


Dark Pasts, Darker Secrets

by FatandNerdy30



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Darker Secrets, M/M, No emotions, Past Lives, Romance, Yaoi, dark pasts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-04
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:21:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 28,687
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25063060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FatandNerdy30/pseuds/FatandNerdy30
Summary: Ryou is thrown into an all boy's school, after being homeschooled all his life. In the walls of Domino school for boys, he and his new friends find something sinister, but nothing as sinister as the ones they are drawn to...
Relationships: Bakura Ryou/Yami Bakura, Honda Hiroto | Tristan Taylor/Otogi Ryuuji | Duke Devlin, Jounouchi Katsuya | Joey Wheeler/Kaiba Seto, Malik Ishtar/Yami Malik, Mutou Yuugi/Yami Yuugi
Comments: 34
Kudos: 41





	1. Chapter 1

Ryou stared up at the looming building before him with a feeling of dread and terror. He hated transferring! Especially this late in the year. It seemed that he was always the new student, the one who was always picked on the most.

Well he wasn't going to take it here, no sir! He took a deep breath and squared his shoulders, gathering his courage to enter the doors. As he neared the large wooden portal, he felt something come over him, almost like a feeling of foreboding, but also a thrill of excitement went through him. He placed a hand on the wooden doors and pushed, grunting with the force it took to open it, thinking much braver thoughts than what he felt at the moment.

The first thing that hit him was the strong smell of wood varnish, then pine-scented cleaners that probably made the floors shine like a mirror. At least he knew this school was cleaner than the ones he'd been enrolled in before. Ryou stepped further into the building and found himself in the middle of what looked like a boat floating on rough waters, below it read the words 'Domino School for Boys'. Looking at the boat made him think of his father, whom he wished was there for him instead of at the excavation site somewhere in Egypt. Unfortunately, he was unable to bring Ryou with him and had him enrolled in this school, which was supposedly the best in this area.

At first, Ryou had put up a fight about it, wanting to be with his only remaining family. But, in the end, he had realized that his father was only trying to what he thought was best for his son. Traveling all over the world was no good for a boy of Ryou's age.

Ryou sighed sadly. He didn't want to be here, but as his father had said, he needed a stable learning environment. Reaching into his pocket he withdrew the letter of acceptance that had been mailed to their temporary address and opened it to look at the list of classes and rooms.

What he thought was a bit odd was that there was no one there to welcome him. In all his other schools there had been at least been a teacher waiting for him to show him around the school. But here he was all alone. And it was a bit scary.

He studied his list and noticed that his first class was underway, but no too far. If he hurried he would be able to make it hopefully before the teacher got too far into the lesson. With that he took his first steps into his new school and home, thinking braver thoughts than he thought.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A head of white hair was all to be seen from the figure sitting behind the last desk of the last row. Slight snoring was heard from the boy as he dozed in and out listening to the teacher droning on with the mathematics lesson. The teacher raised his voice at one of the students, rousing the boy into looking up to watch his fellow pupil be chastised. God this year was going to be so boring if this was the only action he found.

The teacher turned his attention to the snoozing boy, bringing him fully back into the world. "Bakura!" Two cold brown eyes glared at the teacher, angry from being woken up. "What?" he snapped. The teacher's face stayed angry, but he couldn't even come close to looking Bakura in the eyes. "I was asking you, what is the answer to the equation on the board?"

Bakura gave one last glare before turning his attention to the sloppy handwriting on the board. Seriously, how was this guy a teacher when his writing was barely legible? But he sucked it up and quickly did the problem in his head. "X equals two and three fourths. Happy?" The teacher was about to scold him when there was a knock on the door.

All eyes went to the door, but Bakura chose to glance at his friend, who was obviously fast asleep in the seat next to him. Bakura sighed. Why wasn't Marik ever picked on? It always seemed to be him. A loud snore made Bakura smirk and he shook his head, finally turning his attention to the door.

It seemed as if the teacher was talking to someone, but who? The middle-aged man stepped away after a few more moments, his eyes full of smiles as he looked back at the class. It made Bakura sick just to see it. "Class," the teacher began. "I have just been informed that we have a new student joining us." Almost in unison, the class came to rapt attention, all but the exception of Bakura and Marik. 

The teacher stepped away from the door to allow the mystery student in. "Please come in, Ryou." A few seconds passed before a small boy stepped through the door, the first thing catching Bakura's attention was the color of his hair. White. Maybe a shade or two lighter than his, but it was still white. The boy walked stiffly, betraying how nervous he was even though his face (and it was a pretty face) showed a calm exterior.

"H-hello everyone," the boy's voice was soft and shaky as he smiled at the class. "It's nice to meet you." He made a small bow. 

"Ryou is originally from Japan, but he moved to England for his father to be closer to his work as a leading professor of Egyptology." The class was almost enamored by the teacher's information and instantly began chattering and whispering in awed voices. Bakura rolled his eyes. That was all it took for the sheep to follow the newest herder. Give them a piece of juicy talk and they would rip it open like a pack of hyenas.

The teacher cleared his throat and the class settled into silence. "I'm sure Ryou would be willing to tell us all about his exciting life a bit later. But for now, why don't you take a seat in front of Marik? Marik raise your hand, please." Bakura smirked as he raised his hand, staring directly at the man, daring him to do something about it. The teacher took a step back, his hand going to his throat in a protective manner. "Umm, I-I have to go and get you a book from the storeroom. Please take your seat, Ryou."

Ryou nodded and made his way toward Bakura, eyeing the boy nervously. Bakura's smirked became colder, turning into a depraved smile when the boy visibly shivered. "A-are you Marik?" Bakura shook his head. "Nope. He is." Ryou stared at the sleeping boy Bakura pointed to.

Ryou scowled as the tanned boy so conveniently had his feet up on the empty seat that was supposed to be his. "Excuse me, but you seem to be using my seat." When Marik didn't budge, Bakura had to withhold a laugh. Ryou watched the obviously sleeping boy, then took a deep breath and exclaimed; "Excuse me!"

" **WHAT!?** "

Ryou jumped back by the explosion, frightened by the now angry boy glaring at him. "Y-you're in my seat," he stuttered lowly. Marik seemed to almost growl at him, then kicked the chair in front of him over. 

"There's your damned seat. Now goodnight."

Bakura couldn't help but snicker at the look on the new boy's face as he righted his chair, his face beet red as he avoided looking at his other classmates.

' _Nice_ ,' thought Ryou. ' _My first day and I already have an enemy._ '


	2. Chapter 2

After that horrible first period, the day went smoother for Ryou, for the two boys weren't in any of his other classes, thankfully. As the day went on, Ryou made a few friends rather quickly, which was a pleasant surprise.

It was in his second class that he made his first friend, a small boy named Yuugi Muto. He seemed kind enough, always smiling. He noticed right away how nervous Ryou was and came over to introduce himself plus a few of his own friends. Ryou really liked Jonouchi and Honda, who together were a comedy duo that had him and the class laughing with their antics the whole period.

The day seemed to go by fast, and on their way to lunch, Yuugi introduced another friend of his named Otogi. He was more serious than the others, but he was very nice to be around.

At the moment the smell of food was calling to Ryou's empty stomach and he admitted as they walked, quite embarrassed, that he hadn't eaten breakfast that morning for he was far too nervous. Of course, that initiated some playful teasing from the group, but Ryou wasn't bothered by it. Finally, Otogi was the one to change the subject. "So Ryou, what was England like?"

"Well, it was rather nice, but some areas were too crowded for my tastes," Ryou replied after a moment. "My favorite place was in New York City. It was beautiful, though again, a bit crowded, especially during the summer and winter breaks."

Yuugi stared up at him with wide, awed eyes. "Wow! You've been everywhere haven't you?" The white-haired boy laughed. "Not everywhere, but I have seen quite a few places."

The group entered the noisy cafeteria and Ryou was taken aback by the sheer size of it. It was almost as large as his father's last excavation site! Students sat at the round tables placed in various places, all laughing and trying to talk over one another.

The group headed for the long lunch line, and Ryou spotted the boys from his first period class, but they were joined by three other people, two of whose faces he couldn't see. Suddenly, as if knowing Ryou was looking at him, the other white-haired boy turned his head and stared at him, his hard gaze making Ryou shudder.

The boy gulped and quickly moved to catch up with his friends. "Yuugi," he called quietly to get the boy's attention. "Who is that boy with the white hair? He seems a bit...off." The shorter boy looked around and scowled when he spotted who Ryou was talking about, still staring at them, or more pointedly Ryou.

"That's Bakura. Stay away from him, he's bad news, and that includes the others at that table. There's been a rumor for the longest time that he and the rest of them at that table are a gang."

One of the boys, one who looked alarmingly like Yuugi turned at that moment and said boy turned red, turning his head quickly. Ryou shivered at that thought and moved with the line, finally reaching the counter to order his lunch as quickly as possible, wanting to get away from the burning glare he could feel almost burning through his head.  
' _I guess that would explain his and the other one's attitude_ ,' he thought.

Once the group was seated they ate in silence, which seemed odd for Jonouchi and Honda, but it seemed as they were more interested in their food. Ryou couldn't blame them. He was famished.

"Woah Ryou," Otogi chastised good-naturedly. "Take a breath there." The boy blushed and put his fork down, nearly half of his food gone. "Oh my...I usually don't do that. I guess I was hungrier than I thought."

Out of nowhere, a fist suddenly slammed down on the table in front of Ryou, making the boy choke on his juice. "Holy shit, 'Kura! He does look like you!" A chuckle sounded in Ryou's ear. "only this one's much cuter."

Ryou looked up into who thought was Marik's face, but the voice was all wrong. This boy sounded much more light-hearted than Marik had that morning, although he was in a foul mood. The blonde moved closer, a large grin on his face, his eyes gleaming with mischief. "Maybe we should check if he's exactly like you....down here."

Ryou didn't have a chance to react before there was a hand grabbing privates and squeezing. His face went red and after a moment he got over his shock and leaped from the table, the chair crashing down behind him. He whirled around to face the Marik look-a-like and promptly smacked him across the face. "How dare you touch me like that, you pervert!?"

The others in the group had risen moments before Ryou reacted, Honda and Otogi seeming to share some kind of look with blonde. Bakura came forward then, chuckling. "Now, now, boys. My friend Malik here was just playing around with the little runt. We just came over to welcome our new classmate, since this morning we didn't have a chance."

He walked closer to Ryou and brought his hands down on the boy's shoulders hard, making Ryou give a short yelp. "Welcome to our big happy family," Bakura sneered. Malik giggled and leaned to look Ryou in his eyes. "Meet your new daddy."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was later in the evening after dinner and Ryou sat in his room alone. Thankfully his things had been sent ahead of him and he was able to unpack slowly, finally getting it all put away. He was spread out on his bed, looking out the window over his pillow, staring at the stars. It was a rather large room, another bed on the other side, looking as if it hadn't been used at all. Ryou sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. "I miss you father," he whispered, feeling the burning of tears behind his eyes, hot and sad.

This would be the longest he's ever been away from his only parent, and though he should be enjoying his freedom, it made him feel cut off. The night grew later and slowly Ryou began to drift to sleep when suddenly a loud bang caused him to jump, nearly falling out of bed. His eyes were wide as he looked around the room, jumping when there was another bang coming from the door. Leaping from the bed he rushed to the door and tried opening it, but it wouldn't open!

"Hey! Who's out there? I can't open my door! Help me!" His voice quivered as he pounded on the wood. Muffled laughter came from the other side.

"Ah ah ah!" said a familiar voice. "Say please and we might open the door in the morning." Malik! That was Malik's voice! 

"No!" Ryou cried, starting to panic. "Open the door now! Let me out!" Bakura's laughter could then be heard outside the door. 

"Awww, is the little boy lonely? Want one of us to come in there?" As soon as he said those words, a noise from the window had Ryou spinning around to see Marik climbing through wearing a crooked grin.

"He looks pretty lonely from this side!" he called, his words slurring.

Bakura and Malik laughed hysterically from the hallway. Ryou backed away until he hit the wall, too scared to smell the rancid scent of alcohol coming from Marik until the boy was fully into the room and came closer. "Y-you're drunk!" Ryou hissed as if afraid someone might hear him. "Drinking isn't allowed in this school, not to mention that we're underage!" Marik laughed at that last statement, shaking his head. 

"If you only knew....and besides, does it look like I give a shit about what the rules in this place are?" He took a step closer to Ryou and stumbled. The smaller boy squeaked and pressed himself against the wall, sliding across it until he found himself in a corner.

"Don't hurt him too badly, Marik!" Malik called from outside. "We want the leftovers to have a little fight in them!"

Ryou whimpered as the laughter from outside the door grew fainter, the boys leaving him alone to deal with the drunken Marik. "Why are you doing this to me?" he sobbed. "What have I done to you!?" Marik righted himself from another stumbled step and giggled.

"Just shut up and take it like a man..even though you don't look anything like one." He laughed again. "I promise not to hurt you too bad.." Marik reached a hand out and stroked Ryou's cheek softly.

The white-haired boy made to scream, but Marik's hand covered his mouth before a sound could escape. "What did I just say?" he hissed and Ryou nearly vomited at the strong smell of alcohol that washed over his face.

When the boy stilled Marik's hand loosened and Ryou took his chance. Quickly he placed his hands on Marik's chest and shoved with all his might. The blonde boy stumbled back with a curse and Ryou ran toward his own bed. Marik smiled, his lips curving to an evil smirk. "So, you want to do it on your bed? I can deal with that."

As the drunk came closer, Ryou looked frantically around for something, anything to use as a weapon. He spotted his lamp next to his bed and scrambled over to it. Reaching back he felt the cold metal in his hands and he gripped it tightly. When Marik was close enough, Ryou lifted his lamp and with a mighty swing, he brought it crashing over his tormentor's head. Marik's eyes went wide before he groaned and fell, unfortunately forward onto Ryou.

Breathing heavily, Ryou pushed the heavy body off him and stumbled back, his back hitting the opposite wall. His legs buckled and he slid down the wall, falling heavily onto the floor.

His whole body trembled and tears streamed down his face as he breathed heavily. Now he really wanted to go home....


	3. Chapter 3

All through their classes the next day, Bakura and Malik couldn't keep a straight face and actually managed to stay awake, which surprised all their teachers. In their third period class, they whispered about a bet they made the last night, on whether Ryou would be able to walk soon, or if he would be in bed for a week. By the time lunch rolled around, the boys were in hysterics.

They hurried to their table where the rest of their group sat, minus one, they noticed, which made them laugh all the more. Seto and Yami stared at them with identical confused faces. "You would never guess what happened last night," Malik laughed, wiping the tears from his eyes. Seto lifted a brow. "Something amusing, I would assume?"

Bakura nodded, laughing harder than his friend. "Malik...Malik got drunk last night," he began and Yami smirked. "And there's something unusually funny about that?" Bakura laughed again, shaking his head. "No. You see, we locked the new kid in his room, and Marik, drunk as a skunk, climbed through his window." He had to take a breath, giggling all the while. "When we went back to the room to check, we heard heavy breathing and a groan....so you can imagine what happened."

Yami's eyes widened in shock, especially at Marik's behavior on the whole thing. "You did not," he began not able to believe what he was hearing. "You didn't let that poor boy get raped?" Malik shook his head. 

"It wouldn't be rape in the end. Trust me." Malik laughed.

Seto said nothing but cast a furrowed glance at Yami, who shook his head defeatedly. Nothing even he said could take the mischievous side of Bakura and Marik.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The lunchroom was loud and crowded as usual as Yuugi and his friends walked in, his bright purple eyes searching in hopes of seeing a head of white hair, but the only one he saw made him enraged. Above the usual chatter, he could hear Bakura and Malik laughing while their two friends sat there with worried faces.

But, one of them was missing from their group. Yuugi took a seat, not even getting something to eat, but instead kept his eyes on the group of trouble makers across the room. At one point Bakura looked over at him, smiling evilly. That was the breaking point for the small boy. When Ryou hadn't shown up in his classes Yuugi had gotten worried, but he wasn't sure which room was his and couldn't go pounding on all the doors without missing at least one of his classes. Now he had a clue as to what had happened to his new friend. "I'll be right back," was all he said as he got up.

"What's up, Yuug?" Jonouchi asked, looking up from the card game he'd started with Otogi. Yuugi glared at the group across the room. "I think I know what happened to Ryou," he snarled and began storming across the lunchroom.

"The small one is coming this way," Yami's voice interrupted the giggling deviants and all at once, the four looked to watch a scowling Yuugi Motou storming his way toward their table. Stunned amusement was the only thing they could feel at the look on his face.

"Where is Ryou?" the small boy asked, his voice edged with anger.

"How should we know?" Malik answered. 

Yuugi scowled and slammed his hands on the table, the sound resonating through the cafeteria. "I SAID WHERE IS RYOU!?"

The four were stunned to silence, along with the entire student body. Yuugi hardly ever spoke, except to his friends, and even then he was quite quiet. And here he was screaming at the most feared group in the school! The small boy stared them down one by one, his eyes like stone. "Do I have to repeat myself?"

Seto smirked and was the first to respond. "I believe we, and the entire school, heard you the first time. And besides, even if we knew, why would we tell you?" Yuugi's scowl deepened, making his face scrunch up in that cute way Yami liked to see. 

"Tell me, little one," Yami said softly. "Why do you want to know so badly?" Yuugi's gaze locked with Yami's. "Could it be that....you are possibly in a relationship? The gossip tree has let loose that you two are always seen together nowadays..."

Yuugi, of course, was taken back by the question, his face turning a deep red. "N-no. We're just good friends, that's all." 

Bakura snorted at that. "Yeah, friends with benefits." 

Yami spared him a glance before focusing on the still blushing Yuugi, surprised to see the anger back on his face. Without warning, Yuugi's hand came around and smacked Bakura across the face, leaving a small red hand-print. "How dare you?" he raged. "Ryou is more of a man than you will ever be! So what if we're in a relationship? At least he isn't cruel and egotistical like you!"

The group was stunned to silence as he continued. "If he was, he would have sent you to the principal's office the first day he met you!"

With each word out of Yuugi's mouth, Yami felt his heart sink deeper and deeper into despair. So, the rumors were true...He was pulled out of his thoughts as Yuugi carried on. "Now, tell me where he is or I will send you there myself and we all know you're afraid of him....one visit and you'll be kicked out of this school!"

There was a moment of silence before Malik started laughing again, holding his hurting sides, but his laughter seemed to be forced. "The shrimp's locked in his room." Yuugi nodded and turned to go when a tray was slid across the table toward him. 

"Take this to him," Yami said sadly. "I'm sure he must be hungry." Yuugi gave him a soft smile and grabbed the tray, running from the lunchroom. 

"You like him, don't you? That is the reason you had Otogi and Honda look after him, isn't it?" Seto looked at his cousin knowingly. Yami was silent a moment as he listened to Malik and Bakura squabble over being defeated by a mouse. 

Finally, he smiled sadly and looked into Seto's ever-knowing blue eyes. "That my friend is for me to know, and for you to find out."

Seto smirked and crossed his arms over his chest. "And what if it isn't' him?" Red and blue clashed for a moment before Yami chuckled, and turned to look at where Yuugi had been mere moments ago. 

"It's him. I would never forget his light."


	4. Chapter 4

Ryou forced himself to stay awake for the whole night, never allowing his eyes to droop for even a moment, scared that the unconscious boy would suddenly get up and attack him. In the early light of the morning, Marik was now snoring on the floor, which made the smaller boy worry less about him. He was afraid he'd hit him too hard. Earlier to make sure, he gathered the courage and edged his way toward the sleeping boy, and jumped when he let out a particularly loud snore. So he was just sleeping off the alcohol.

The white-haired boy shook his head and made his way to the door for the umpteenth time that night and pressed his ear against it, listening for any sounds of movement again. When he'd heard the other boys on the floor moving outside earlier and he'd tried calling for help, but no one even stopped. And now there were no sounds at all outside the door. To top it all off, his throat and hands hurt from yelling and pounding on the door, and he was hungry. At the thought of food, his stomach grumbled loudly, almost as if to give a point that he needed to eat. Now he regretted not going to dinner last night, but he was pretty tired. "Wish I had something to eat in here," he mumbled, sliding down the wall to sit on the floor.

There were a few moments of tense silence, broken periodically by the loud snoring of Marik until Ryou heard what sounded like someone calling out and pounding on doors. He perked his head up and listened closely, and the sound kept getting closer. Was that...."Hello?!" he called out. He stood and ran to the door, banding on it. "Is that you, Yuugi? Please help me!" He glanced a nervous look at Marik.

"Ryou!?" Yuugi's voice came from the other side of the door and said boy nearly fainted with relief. "Yes! I'm locked in! Please help me!"

"Wait there, and I'll get some help," Yuugi called, his voice already fading as he ran. Ryou tried to say something about Marik, but his friend was gone already. He sighed and turned to lean against the door, praying to whatever God was listening that Yuugi hurried back.

Not even five minutes passed before he heard footsteps again, but it was more than one set this time, along with Yuugi's voice urging someone to hurry. "Ryou, are you all right?" Yuugi called through the door. Ryou smiled. "Yes. Just please open the door." He backed away when a strange voice told him to, then he heard a loud popping and muttering. The boy jumped when there was a loud bang and the door opened. Ryou was so surprised he nearly fell back on his butt. An elderly man stood in the doorway holding what looked like a crowbar. Ryou was about to thank him when Yuugi's small form ran past the man into the room.

"Ryou! I was so worried when you didn't come to class!" The smaller boy looked over his friend for any injuries, reminding Ryou of a mother hen. Then Yuugi paused, his eyes wide as he looked beyond the other boy. "Ummm...What is Marik doing here?"

The white-haired boy sighed, running a hand through his hair wearily. "He apparently got drunk last night and came through my window, thinking it was his room." Ryou felt bad about lying, but it was sort of the truth, wasn't it? "When he saw me though, he decided to get a little frisky....so I hit him over the head with my lamp."

He waved his hand over to the bent piece of furniture. The tri-colored haired boy was staring at Ryou in wonder. "I'm so sorry...but, you took down one of the toughest guys in school! Way to go!" Ryou smiled at the boy's beaming face, then blushed when his stomach grumbled loudly. "I think your stomach smells food," Yuugi giggled, getting up.

And he was right. Ryou could smell something wafting into the room, stronger than the usual smells from the cafeteria. Yuugi disappeared out of the room for a second, returning with a tray full of food. "I brought this, knowing you'd be hungry." Ryou smiled gratefully and got up to sit on his bed to eat, the two talking quietly.

Once he was finished, the boy grabbed his backpack, determined to go to the rest of his classes. He just hoped he wouldn't get in trouble for missing most of the day, and only on his second day. Yuugi, who walked silently beside him, worried his lip, as he'd been doing almost the entire time.

"Ryou," he asked, breaking the silence. "Do you know who did that to your door?"

The white-haired boy started, but quickly calmed himself with a smile and shook his head. "No, I don't." The smaller boy simply stared at his friend, his eyes telling that he didn't believe Ryou.

"Don't you want to know?" Again Ryou shook his head. "No, I'm out of there and Marik should be out of my room when I get back. That's all that matters. Now come on, we can't be late for class."

Ryou rushed away from his confused friend, a guilty feeling rising in his gut. He knew it was Bakura, but for some odd reason, if he said it, he felt as if something bad would happen. It made no sense to him, but that was the way he felt for the rest of the day.


	5. Chapter 5

Yami stared at the cards in front of him, a pillow gripped in his lap. Smirking, the teen lifted his hand and all but slammed the card on the bed, making Seto jump. "HA! Take that!" he exclaimed proudly.

Seto stared at the cards before him thoughtfully before flipping over a face-down card and sat back with a superior grin. "I attack your Dark Magician with my Blue-Eyes White Dragon." Yami's jaw dropped in chock. "Congratulations. Your life points are now zero."

Red eyes glared at Seto then at the cards. "It's always the same....you and your Blue Eyes should just get married. You use it enough," he griped. Seto chuckled and began picking up his cards. "How about another game? And this time, the loser has to clean the room?" 

Seto thought about that for a moment before nodding. He couldn't turn away from an offer like that. Even though he kept his side in order, he hated cleaning. "You're on." The smaller boy smirked and Seto raised an inquiring eyebrow. "I know that look. What are you thinking?" 

Yami shrugged. "I just thought we would make this a little more challenging. How about I'm not allowed to use my Dark Magician, and you can't use your Blue Eyes." The brunette turned it over in his mind before nodding again. 

"Deal."

The two cut each other's decks and the game was on. They played in silence, dealing critical blows to one another, that was until Seto chuckled as he placed a card down. "I believe this game is mine yet again, dear cousin." He flipped over his card, demolishing Yami's hand, as well as the cards he had in attack position on the field.  
"Would you like me to get you a little maid outfit for you?" 

Yami glared at his cousin. "I hate you."

Seto smirked. "So does everyone else." The tri-colored haired teen was about to retaliate when there was a knock on the door, cutting him off. "It's open," he called a little warily. If it were Bakura, Malik or Marik they would have simply walked in without bothering to knock.

The two stared at the door and were more than a little surprised to see Yuugi's head peeking in, his face flushed crimson, his eyes on his tightly clasped hands. "Yuugi?" Yami asked. "What are you doing here?"

The boy glanced up for a brief moment before hanging his head. "W-well....I...I just wanted to thank you for giving me food for Ryou earlier...it was really n-nice of you."

Yami smiled and inclined his head. "Don't worry about it. It was on the house, little one."

Yuugi couldn't help the blood rushing to his face at that name. Something about it sounded familiar....the words said so warmly. "Anything else?" Seto growled, breaking the moment. 

"Y-yes," Yuugi stuttered. "I just wanted to let you know, Yami, that I don't have a relationship with Ryou..." He glanced at Yami with a small smile. "Promise." Yami felt a weight lift from his chest as the boy turned and left, shutting the door behind him softly. There were a few seconds of silence before the door opened and once again Yuugi stuck his head in. Seto glared at him. 

"Just because you were invited in once, does not give you access all the time," he growled.

Yuugi simply nodded, but kept his attention on Yami, staring at him with kind eyes. "And...I don't know what you've heard, but...there's no way I could hate you...Goodnight." 

The door shut for a final time, leaving Yami and Seto alone once again. Yami flushed when he found his cousin staring at him. "What!?" he cried.

Seto simply shook his head with a smirk. "Nothing....absolutely nothing."  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning was a hassle for poor Ryou as he rushed from his room to his class, so tired from the prior night that he had overslept almost an hour. That was the worst part of having his own room, he had no one to wake him. As he ran through the door to homeroom, he ran dead on with what felt like a brick wall, and a hand grabbed his arm, keeping him from falling.

He looked up at the tall man, confused. He had never seen this man before. Who was he? He stared down at Ryou with one eye, the other hidden behind a curtain of shoulder-length silver hair, almost clashing with the dark red suit he wore. Ryou shivered, caught in the golden gaze, reminding him of a hawk trained on its prey."Ryou?" the man asked, his drawling voice seeming to linger in the air like a thick fog. The boy nodded shakily. "Come with me, please."

Ryou could only nod and moved to the side to let this imposing man pass, following him to the door. He sensed someone staring at him and looked back to see Bakura's eyes trained on him and in their depths was what looked like nervous anger. Ryou narrowed his eyes and turned away with a huff, leaving the room quickly to catch up with the silver-haired man.

He couldn't help but stare at the man as they walked. He was caught a few times and each time Ryou turned his head quickly, embarrassed for staring. But, he felt as if he had met this man somewhere, but where he couldn't think of. He wracked his brain so hard, he almost ran into the man again when he stopped suddenly. Before them was a closed door, a gold plaque on its surface reading;

' **Pegasus J. Crawford. Principal** '.

Together they entered the lush office. Ryou looked around with wide eyes at his surroundings. He'd never before seen an office so grand! Beneath his feet was a plush maroon carpet, and only one giant window behind the large dark oak desk, letting light brighten the room and a potted plant that just reached the sill. Ryou's eyes studied the many shelves of books, some in languages he didn't know. "Please take a seat."

Pegasus' voice made Ryou jump and he turned to see the man smirking from behind his desk, staring straight at him. Slowly the boy made his way to a large dark brown leather chair. He sat straight and rigid, his hands clasped tightly in his lap. Pegasus stared at him for a long moment, making the boy sweat nervously. There was something about this man...

"Now son," the principal began in his drawling voice. "The janitor has told me of your predicament yesterday with your door. He also spoke of young Marik being in your room, apparently unconscious on the floor."

As he spoke, Ryou found it harder and harder to look away from the man, feeling a sense of numbness slowly taking over his body. "I know it was no accident. You can tell me who did it." Ryou felt something in his mind, almost as if someone were searching for the truth. The principal leaned over his desk slightly, lacing his hands together, a dark gleam in his visible eye.

Taking a calming breath, Ryou went rigid and quickly put up his walls, something he'd taught himself to do when he was younger. And over years of practice, his walls were nearly impenetrable. Pegasus jerked back a little and Ryou could feel feeling coming back to his body. "I truly don't know, sir," the boy answered calmly. "I was asleep, and when I woke that morning the door wouldn't open, and I found Marik asleep on my floor." When Pegasus leaned back Ryou noted a faint sheen of sweat on his brow, highlighted by the sunlight filtering through the large window, and he could still feel the nagging push to get into his mind. 

"The lock, as the janitor told me, seemed to have been broken. It would take a lot of force, and that would make a lot of noise."

Ryou shrugged, making the wall in his mind thicker. "I'm a heavy sleeper, sir. Plus it was my first day and I was exceptionally tired." Pegasus nearly sagged in his chair, but righted him at the last minute, his breathing deeper though he was trying hard to hide it. "I see...Fine. Go back to class." The boy felt the probing cease and sighed softly at the relief.

Ryou stood and made a small bow and turned to leave, only to be stopped by a hand gripping his wrist. "I will tell you this now, Ryou boy. Since you did not tell me who the culprit is, I shall find out who did it myself. And when I do, he will get more than the minor chastising I had planned if you had told me. He will be expelled from this school, as well as blacklisted from all other preparatory schools in this area."

The boy stared into the principal's eye, shivering at the sinister gleam lurking in the depths of the golden gaze. "Please let me go," Ryou whispered faintly. "I have to get back to class."

Pegasus let him go after a moment and the boy all but ran from the room, stopping a far distance from the office to catch his breath and stop shaking. What the hell was that!? He put a hand to his forehead, taking deep breaths as a pounding filled his head. All his life, Ryou had only met one person with psychic talents, and that had been when he was a child. He had been the one to teach Ryou how to construct the walls in his mind.

And now suddenly....he shivered at the remembrance of that cold, numb feeling invading his body. He never wanted to feel that again. Finally, when his body stopped shaking, he pushed himself from the wall and started toward his next class, the bell having rung seconds ago.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I haven't been writing that much due to one of my dogs got hurt. She was dragging her left leg for three weeks and the vet (yes we rushed her to the vet) said she has a 70% chance of healing by herself. She finished her muscle relaxers and pain pills, now she's just gotta heal and get better. But, she needs extra attention at the moment. So, she's getting better. She can't go up and down the stairs at the moment, but she can walk a little and run for a minute or two. So, she's healing, but it impedes on my writing time.

Ryou was as normal as he could be for the rest of the morning, avoiding all the questions his friends threw at him with a 'nothing happened', or a 'he just wanted to welcome me to the school'. Though he was rather annoyed with the gossip chain at the school for letting it leak that he was called to the principal's office. Finally, the lunch bell rang and Ryou hurriedly excused himself by telling his friends he had to use the bathroom.

Once in the bathroom, the boy took a shaky breath, gripping the edge of a sink hard, his head down as he took shaky breaths. Ever since that morning, he'd been getting a horrible headache. A flash of the gleam in the man's eyes ran through Ryou's eyes and he shivered, still feeling the sick, evil feeling from the other man as he pushed into Ryou's mind, searching for information, rummaging through his private life.

Ryou stared at himself in the mirror, seeing the same scrawny boy he always saw, but he had a secret. All his life he knew he was different, and until he met that white garbed man those many years ago when he was with his father on a dig site did he know what it was that separated him from normal people. Ryou had been born psychic. At first, he thought he had been able to move things with his mind but was disappointed quickly. No, he was able to take people's emotions, whether they be negative or positive, and change them to his will.

He had been warned by the strange man to always keep his shield up, never knowing when or where he would meet someone like him who would try and hurt him. Now, Ryou was glad for the advice.

With another hearty sigh, Ryou ran the cold water, splashing some on his face. He was hoping to get his body under control before one of his friends came looking for him, worried about him. He hated keeping secrets from them, but he was afraid to tell anyone-even his father-about his differences, afraid he would be deemed a freak, or no one would believe him. As it was, in this school around so many people, he had to keep from using his abilities.

Finally, he felt up to facing the others and went to leave, when suddenly a hand came from nowhere, throwing him against the blue-tiled wall. Ryou yelped as his shoulders and back slammed into the hard surface, his breath rushing from his lungs in a whoosh. Gasping for breath he looked at his attacker and found himself staring into a pair of heartless brown eyes. "B-Bakura!" he coughed out. When did he come in?

The taller boy frowned deeply, moving forward, adding pressure to Ryou's shoulder, which he still held. "What did you tell the fag this morning?" he demanded roughly.

"The....fag?" Ryou was absolutely confused now. "Who are you-"

"The principal!" Bakura growled. "He took you into his office this morning, didn't he? He must have asked you about being locked in your room. What did you tell him?" Ryou winced when Bakura squeezed his shoulder hard, knowing there would have a bruise. He tried to stand but was slammed into the wall again. 

"N-nothing!" he finally gasped out. "I told Mr. Crawford nothing!"

Hard brown eyes stared at him, gleaming with disbelief. "There's no way you would just...You're lying!" Bakura slammed him against the wall harder this time, leaving the boy even more breathless and unable to catch his breath as quickly. "If you're telling the truth, I'm guessing you took the blame for this? Ryou shook his head, gritting his teeth against the pain as the larger boy pushed him against the wall. 

"N-no," Ryou gasped. "I just told him I slept through the whole thing, and couldn't open the door in the morning, that's it! I swear!"

"Why would you do that?" 

The smaller boy simply shook his head, when Bakura slammed his fist into the wall behind his head. "It just felt wrong!" he blurted out. For a moment Ryou felt the barrier in his mind slip as he concentrated on his breathing and the pain, and in that instant, he felt something slip into his mind. He flinched and tried to fight it, but the presence was too strong to keep out. But, it didn't feel evil at all....instead it felt warm and somehow familiar. He felt it probing through his memories and with a grunt, he grabbed a lead from Bakura and pushed himself into the other's mind.

' _Why would anyone do that for someone like me?_ ' Bakura's mind quivered with the question as it repeated it over and over in confusion. ' _He doesn't even know me...or like me for that matter._ ' Suddenly the flash of a face had Ryou recoiling, the woman beautiful as she smiled at a mysterious figure, the memory blossoming such warm love that Ryou felt even as he was thrown back into his own body.

Tears filled in Ryou's eyes when he could still feel Bakura's presence in his own mind and he slammed his barrier up so quickly the other was nearly thrown away from him from the force. "I"m telling you the truth!" he yelled. 

The two stared at one another and quite suddenly Bakura rushed forward, crushing his lips to Ryou's in a brutal airtight seal. The smaller boy let out a gasp which enabled a warm, wet tongue to invade his mouth. Ryou struggled at first, but relaxed when he could hear Bakura's soothing voice whispering in his mind, brushing against it like butterfly wings, almost like a lover's touch. Something about it just seemed....right.

Bakura could only sum this kiss up as trying to hide his shocked reaction to when Ryou had invaded his mind. So the little one was psychic? He had a feeling ever since he saw the boy that first day, something in him wanted this....and so much more. An old memory flashed in his mind again, but this time instead of the beautiful woman he always saw, it was Ryou's angelic face smiling at him with such love.

That made him pull away quickly, shaking his head to clear it of the image. He knew it would never happen. "I think we'll be seeing more of one another from now on," Bakura panted. "A lot more." Letting go of the smaller boy he hurried out of the bathroom before they were seen.

Ryou slowly slid down the wall, collapsing on the floor. What just happened?


	7. Chapter 7

All through lunch Yuugi worried about his new friend and spent the period searching the crowd in hopes of spotting the familiar head of white hair. Ryou had been acting off the whole day and then he completely disappears? A flash of white caught his attention and he looked up to see Bakura walking back to his table with a serious look on his face. Yuugi, of course, wanted to go ask the boy about Ryou's whereabouts, but as he jumped up the bell rang to signal the end of lunch. 

The small boy rushed from the cafeteria and spotted Ryou standing by the bathroom door with a dazed look on his face. The small boy furrowed his brows and ran up to his friend, grabbing his elbow making the other jump. Jonouchi, Otogi, and Honda stopped around them. "What's up Yuugi?" Said boy smiled at the others. 

"I have to ask Ryou something about the English assignment," he stated innocently.

He hated lying to his friends but it seemed that something was very wrong with Ryou and he needed privacy to talk to him. Otogi Jonouchi and Honda shrugged and walked away, getting the hint. He watched them, feeling relieved when he heard Otogi's laughter from down the hall a few minutes later. "Alright, Ryou. Something's wrong. You've been acting strangely all day, and now you're in some kind of daze." Ryou blinked and an obviously fake smile spread over his face. He went to speak, but Yuugi beat him to it. "And don't give me that 'I'm fine' stuff. I know you're not...I can feel it. Now tell me, please?"

Ryou was silent for a moment then sighed. "I'm sorry if I had you worried. I'm just tired today. That whole incident with Malik kept me up last night. I was afraid of him coming back in and didn't get a wink of sleep." Yuugi glared at his friend, his intuition telling him that wasn't the truth. 

"We're friends, right?" The white-haired boy nodded. "Well, friends tell each other what's wrong so the other doesn't worry." Yuugi's eyes softened. "And that means the truth." When Ryou was silent, Yuugi took matters into his own hands. Tentatively he let his mind reach out feeling the perimeter out when suddenly Bakura's face flashed before a wall was hastily slammed down. Ryou stared at him with wide, disbelieving eyes. "Has Bakura been bothering you?" Yuugi asked.

Ryou's mouth opened and closed, unable to make words, but at Bakura's name, his face flushed crimson. "You....you're psychic?" he finally asked. The smaller boy sighed and nodded, looking around to make sure they were alone. 

"It's not something that I like to say out loud...and you're the first to be able to sense me and keep me out. Since I can remember I've been able to see into other's minds. Sometimes it happens without my say so, and it can be kind of annoying." Yuugi felt Ryou's wall lifting slightly and Bakura's name flashed in his mind, along with something else he couldn't understand. "Do....do you like Bakura?" Yuugi asked softly.

Said boy thought about the question for a moment. Was that what was wrong? Did he like Bakura? He shook his head to clear that thought. "No!" he shouted, a little louder than he wanted, catching one of the teacher's attention. He smiled and waved at the elderly woman walking down the hall before he turned back to Yuugi, slamming his walls up again, adding extra protection. "I do not like Bakura," he hissed, to which Yuugi raised a brow."Look at what he's done to me! And then today to top it off, I was in the bathroom and he came in, slammed me against a wall and kissed me! Then he walked away."

"He kissed you?!" Yuugi's voice shrilled at the last part, catching the female teacher's attention again and she scowled.

From the corner of his eye, Ryou spotted a door slightly ajar and ran to it, dragging Yuugi behind him, slamming the door shut and turning the dim light on. He paid no attention to the mops and brooms surrounding them, or how the room smelled too much of bleach. "Yes!" he practically screamed now that they were in private. "All right? When I went into the bathroom, Bakura sneaked in while I was washing my face. We were yelling at one another, then out of nowhere he kissed me..." Ryou blushed. 

It had been his first kiss...not the best one, but in the end, it was really good. Yuugi stared at him in shock. "Oh...wow..." 

Suddenly Ryou reached out and grabbed the boy's thin shoulders, shaking him a bit. "You can't tell anyone I told you about this! Bakura would kill me if anyone found out! He would hurt you too....please don't say anything!" Ryou's eyes teared up at the thought of what the bully would do to Yuugi if he ever found out about their conversation.

Just as Yuugi was about to answer the door was flung open and a flash came from nowhere, blinding the two boys. After the shock and the spots cleared, Ryou looked up to see Malik and Marik standing in front of them with a camera. "Smile! Marik cried. "You're on candid camera! Before the shocked boys could do anything the blonde boys were running away, laughing and shouting something. Ryou gulped. He was doomed...


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I've been gone for so long, and that was a short chapter, I decided to upload another chapter!

Ryou decided to skip out on dinner that night. He couldn't be in the same room as Bakura without reddening, and he didn't want to answer questions his friends would definitely have about that. If what he felt with Bakura in the bathroom was right, then that would mean the other boy was just like him...How could it be that in his entire life he'd never met anyone like him, then suddenly he came to a new school and he already met two others. It amazed him. He himself had never had the courage to tell anyone about his abilities. 

But it was obvious that Bakura knew since they shared minds in that one moment. Would he tell anyone? Ryou sighed deeply and walked into his room, flipping the lights and heading to his bed.

"It's not healthy to skip meals, squirt. You're skinny enough as it is." Ryou yelped and jumped, spinning around to face the bed on the other side of the room. Bakura lay on top of the sheets, his head held up with his hand while the other hand lay dangled across his hips. 

"Wh-what are you doing in my room?" Ryou squeaked. "Get out!" Bakura chuckled and dropped the corner of the sheet he was playing with. 

"You can't make me leave. This room partially belongs to me after all."

The boy turned his harsh eyes on Ryou who was more than a little confused. Bakura got off the bed in one fluid movement and slowly made his way toward Ryou, reminding the boy of a tiger stalking its prey. The smaller boy backed away, his eyes wide with fright, but Bakura kept advancing, their steps in time. "When I first came here this was my room," Bakura began as he still walked forward. "But since I don't like being alone, I moved into Marik and Malik's room. Not like they were using the extra bed anyway." He chuckled. "But oh man was that a mistake. That Malik moans like a bitch in heat."

Ryou blushed at the image and backed up quickly, not noticing the bed that was getting closer and closer. Bakura smirked at that and took a large step and Ryou jumped away, letting out a squeal when he fell back on his bed. The taller boy's smirk deepened and he made his move before Ryou could get up. He trapped the boy on the bed with his legs, wedging himself between Ryou's thighs, slowly kneeling on the bed. Ryou stared up at him with frightened eyes and tried to scramble away, his eyes shining bright with fearful tears. 

"But now that you're here, I'm sure this room can be quite..." Bakura leaned forward, his breath warming Ryou's cheek. "Fun."

He sat up a bit to pull his shirt off. Ryou whimpered. Bakura spread Ryou's thighs further apart and those harsh brown eyes caught Ryou's. Just as in the bathroom at that moment the boy felt the brush of another mind against his will, the presence feeling warm and comforting. Bakura threw his shirt to the side, revealing his chiseled chest. 

Without wanting to, Ryou's eyes wandered down Bakura's well-sculpted chest, the shadows from the lamp making him look darker, more sinister. His eyes went further down until they rest on a small mark on Bakura's stomach, shown only by his low hanging pants. "Like what you see?" Bakura mused, chuckling.

Ryou didn't answer, his eyes glued to that spot. The scar looked old, like an injury that had been dealt a long time ago....but it looked like.... Determined for an answer, Ryou sat up and quickly pulled his own shirt off, startling Bakura. "Whoa! Easy kid, I was only joking. Put your shirt back on." But the boy ignored him and looked down at his stomach, quickly finding a dark spot on his stomach, his eyes going wide. "Hey...hey kid? You all right? What's wrong?" Ryou felt the brush against his mind again, but this time it was stronger and that snapped him back to attention. 

Letting out a small squeak, he covered his chest with his arms, looking away from Bakura. "I-I'm sorry...I saw your scar and...It can't be though. It looks similar to my birthmark."

The smaller boy reached for his shirt, but he was stopped by Bakura who grabbed his arms with one hand and pushed him down with the other. "Hey!" Ryou cried and struggled to get away but the other ignored him, too strong for the boy to fight. Bakura's eyes roamed over Ryou's pale, unmarked chest and stomach until he noticed a small spot barely visible from the hem of his pants. Bakura's free hand tugged the boy's pants down a bit, sending him into a panic. "Let go!" Ryou cried, doubling his struggles. Bakura continued to ignore him and looked closely at the mark. 

There was no way...

Lightly his fingers traced the small circle, then the small pyramid inside, moving down to the diamonds that were and weren't connected to the circle, looking as if they were hanging in mid-air. Bakura stared at it in shock. It couldn't be. There was no way that soul could be here, not after what after the gods had told him so many years ago. "Bakura?" Ryou asked softly.

Bakura pulled him up forcefully by his arms, hard eyes meeting with frightened round ones. He pulled his mind out of the boy's, not wanting to be swayed from what he needed. "Do you know anything about this mark?" 

"M-my father once told me," Ryou stuttered after a moment, "when he brought me on a dig about something that looked like my birthmark. But I can't remember exactly what it is he said...Is there something wrong?" Bakura sighed and let the boy go, his small body flopping back on the bed. 

"I'll be in Marik's room." That was the last thing Ryou heard before Bakura left, slamming the door and leaving the boy alone for the rest of the night.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I'm telling you it's him!"

Yami, Seto, Marik, and Malik all sat in Marik's room, watching Bakura pace back and forth from wall to door, his hands flying as he spoke, eyes wide as he raved like a lunatic. Seto sighed and crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back against the chair he sat in. "Are you sure?"

Yami smirked. Always count on Seto to be the voice of reason in any situation. "Perhaps you made a mistake somewhere?" 

Bakura whirled on him, his face a mask of fury. "Have you not heard a **_FUCKING WORD I'VE SAID_**?!" He yelled, the windows rattling. Marik turned to his long time friend, wincing. 

"No need to shout." 

Seto nodded. "Yes. For once I agree with Marik." The white-haired boy shot him a glare, but the brunette ignored it. "Now, tell us one more time, Bakura. What makes you think this boy is your light? And please; this time try to leave the screaming out of it."

Bakura gave a frustrated sigh and flopped on the bed next to Malik, taking a deep calming breath. "One," he began bringing up a fist and uncurling his thumb, "he looks like me."

"But much cuter," giggled Marik. Bakura glared at him and continued. 

"Two; I am very attracted to him." His pointer came up. Once again Marik giggled, this time joined by Malik. Bakura glared at the both of them but Seto clearing his throat brought him back on track. "Three," he uncurled his middle finger. "I found that he has abilities, at least we can touch eachother's minds.. And four," he uncurled his ring finger. "He has a birthmark in the exact same shape and size as the scar that was given to me when I was branded by him in the tombs. It's even in the same place!"

Everyone including Seto became somber at the thought of the tombs. That night they had lost a very dear friend and companion, killed by their own hands. Yami took a deep breath and let it out loudly. "Well given the facts, Bakura may be right. So who's going to tell the boy, and real question is, will he believe us?" At the last words, all eyes turned to Seto who simply stared back. 

"What?" he asked, narrowing his eyes. Yami smiled in his all-knowing manner. "No!" Seto cried, standing quickly, the chair nearly toppling behind him. "No!" he shouted again, backing away from them, his hands in the air. "He's Bakura's light! Let him tell the runt!"

Marik smiled sweetly at the brunette. "But Bakura can't use magic like you can, High Priest." 

Seto glared at the blonde. "You know my magic isn't as powerful as it used to be."

Yami snorted. "Bullshit and you know it. Just last week when you were doing your ritual the blast you sent out was powerful to knock me on my ass!" Malik smirked. 

"Yeah, but even a gust of wind can send you down Yami. Look at how skinny you are." 

Yami went to retort but Seto shot them both a 'stop it now' glare before he spoke. "Yes, that may be true, Yami. But the magic it takes to have someone remember a life they were meant to forget...I just don't have it anymore."

"That's even if I want him to remember." Everyone turned to Bakura more than a little shocked, as he leaned against the wall, folding his arms over chest. Bakura smirked and looked at the ceiling. "If I had known my light would be that annoying little runt, I would have offed his soul years ago. Damn brat's a kid, in more ways than one." The group stared at him in shock. Cold brown looked at every one of them, anger glinting in his eyes, which made the shock even greater. It had been so long since they had seen any kind of emotions in those eyes. "I've lived without him for this long, and I can keep doing it."

Seto was the first to shake himself of his stupor, his body tensing up. "But you know what will happen to you if you don't accept him soon." he took a deep breath and let it out in a sigh. "Your soul will be sentenced to a lifetime of wandering between plains through the Shadow Realm." 

Bakura stood straight, his fists clenched in fury. "Well, it's better than damned existence! That's all this is, it's existing! You all know by now that I can't feel anything and haven't been able to for years. I'd be better off in the damned Shadow Realm." He stormed out of the room, slamming the door shut and leaving everyone else confused.

"What just happened here?" Malik was the first to ask. "Wasn't he just freaking out about finding him, and now he doesn't even want him?"

Yami sighed and looked sadly to the door. "Bakura was right, but he was also wrong." Seto glanced at him. 

"What are you talking about?" 

"What I'm saying is though it's true Bakura hasn't been able to feel anything, but now....now I think his emotions are starting to come back and he can't handle the sudden feelings." There was a collective gasp and Yami held up his hands. "I'm not one hundred percent sure, but before he stormed it, I felt it. It was very faint, but I was getting the feelings of fear and anger from him, and we all saw it I think. His heart is opening to Ryou. He was protecting the boy just now. I think he doesn't want him to get involved in this because he knows Ryou will get hurt in the end."

Seto snorted and fell back into his chair, his shoulders hunched and his face weary. "That may be true...but if he doesn't get over it soon, we may lose him forever."


	9. Chapter 9

For two weeks Ryou tried his best to avoid Bakura. He found different paths to take to his classes and even went as far as to slide his chair away from the boy. Not that Bakura minded in the least. Or that was what he told himself at least. Every time Ryou turned his back on him, he could feel his heart shatter and break. He tried telling himself he was better off alone, that he didn't need anyone. But his actions spoke louder than words. 

Yami, Malik, Marik, and Seto could tell their friend was miserable and they watched in silence until Mark finally lost it. While waiting in line for lunch Bakura pushed a smaller boy out his way, then threatened him in front of a teacher. Marik jumped in when the female faculty member went to punish the white-haired boy and told her Bakura had a bad stomach ache and pulled him out toward the bathroom.

"What the hell is wrong with you!?" Marik hissed when they were in the hallway, keeping his voice in case someone was listening. "You know you can't be sent to that bastard! True what we know is just a hunch, but if it is true...." His violet eyes darkened when he simply thought about it. Bakura simply stared at the wall behind his friend. The blonde growled and gripped Bakura's shirt in one hand, slamming him into the wall. "Snap out of it!" Bakura glared at him but kept silent. Marik grit his teeth and without thinking slapped his friend across the face. Still, it brought nothing but a glare and silence.

The blonde's shoulders sagged and he released Bakura. "Bakura, you know we all care about you too much to see you hurting. And we know this is about Ryou." Bakura nearly growled at the name. 

"This is not about that snot-nosed little brat! I could care less about what happens to him!" 

It was Marik's turn to glare. "Yeah right. And the reason you've become so moody is because you have hemorrhoids." With that, Marik pushed into Bakura's mind, invading all of his thoughts then pulled back almost as soon as he went it. Brown eyes widened in shock and Bakura pulled his fist back and punched the blonde in the face, sending the boy reeling back. "What the hell was that for?!" Marik cried holding his cheek.

"Who gave you the right to go and invade my personal space like that?!"

Marik grinned and wiped the trickle of blood coming from the side of his mouth. "Well, it was the only way to get you to speak, and to hear your true thoughts on the matter. I understand that you're worried about Ryou and about what he has to do in all this.."

Bakura looked away. "Then what you saw and heard was wrong. I have no feelings anymore, remember? I'm a blank shell." 

Marik laughed. "No, that's Seto...and speaking of him." Marik took a step closer to his friend, looking him straight in the eye. "Seto is working on getting his magic back." Bakura's eyes went wide. 

"Are you saying he found...." 

The blonde nodded. "Yes. You know that goofy kid that hangs our with Ryou and Yuugi?" Bakura nodded. "It's him...he's the missing piece." The two were silent for a moment before Bakura burst out laughing, not able to keep it in. 

"Well, that's a kick in the balls. The dumbest kid in the school is Seto's missing piece. Irony."

"Tell me about it," Marik giggled, wiping a tear from his face. "But Kura," his face went solemn. "We just want you to be happy and right now, that's not going to happen without Ryou in the picture. And the only way to get him is to have him remember that part of life you can't." 

Bakura looked down. "I know, but....he's such a little baby. I still can't believe it's him." 

The blonde laughed, slinging an arm around his friend's shoulders. "Just think how Seto's feeling right now." 

Bakura laughed again, which surprised them both. "Shit," he whispered in awe. "I guess it's true. I found my light." Marik smiled and nodded, then rubbed his cheek. 

"Just don't hit me again, got it?" Bakura nodded with a genuine smile.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Blending into the shadows, Seto watched a familiar head of blonde hair moving through the crowded hallway. How could he have not noticed it before? Jonouchi had no memories of his childhood before coming to this school. Whenever Seto looked at the boy he felt a strange feeling and had always mistaken it for hatred. It was true the other hated his guts. 

The brunette was pulled from his thoughts with a smirk at something the blonde said as he neared him. He had always been able to make Seto smile or even laugh at his antics. Seto focused on the boy, sending the impulse to leave his friends. Like clockwork Jonouchi stopped and turned toward Seto and saying something to his friends made his way closer. Now was his chance. The brunette emerged from the shadows and stepped right into Jonouchi's path. 

"Huh?" The blonde shook his head as if trying to clear it after Seto let it go. "What the hell?"

The brunette smirked. Yes, the mutt was funny. "Hello Jonouchi," Seto greeted him. 

Jonouchi stared at him and took a step back, but didn't move any further. "What the hell do you want?" 

Seto shrugged. "Oh, just to talk." He took a step closer to the boy. "You know I've been watching you for quite some time now. And in that time, I've gotten.... _into_ you you could say." Watching hadn't been the only thing Seto had done. For the past two weeks, he had been invading the boy's mind as he slept, searching for any trace of memories but had only found flashes of dreams. Dreams that always included a blurry Seto and a scene that look vaguely familiar to Seto.

Jonouchi's cheeks turned pink and he glared at the taller boy. "Okay, now I know you're here to beat my ass." Without thinking the boy fell into a familiar stance, his hands curling as if holding a well-known weapon. Khopesh Seto guessed. That was his favorite weapon in the past, so small and easy to conceal, but dangerous when used right. "Well, I'm ready for you." Seto stared at him for a moment, then burst out laughing. "What!?" Jonouchi cried. "What the hell is so funny!?" 

It took a few moments for Seto to calm down and he focused on Jonouchi. "Fine," he said silkily. "If it's a fight you want, it's a fight you will get. Name the place and the time."

Jonouchi stepped back, still keeping his stance. "Fine. Tomorrow behind the school after lunch. I know you have a free period at that time."

Seto smirked and raised a brow mockingly. "Oh? And how would you know that? Unless you've been watching me.." 

The blonde's face reddened more and he turned, dropping his hands. "See you tomorrow." He went to leave but was stopped when Seto grabbed his shoulder. 

"Wait. I haven't set the terms yet." Jonouchi turned back around, a look of worry on his face. "If I win, I'll leave you alone for the rest of our time here. But if I win," Seto's lips curved slowly into a smile that never reached his eyes. "If I win, you have to give me one night of your time." 

Jonouchi fell back. "L-like a date?!"

Seto shrugged. "If you wish to call it that, then yes. Like a date. And who knows....it just might turn into something later on..." His look spoke volumes to Jonouchi who paled and the brunette smirked at the bustle of words that flashed through the blonde's mind.

"Fine. But I'm not gonna go easy on you." 

Seto smiled and dropped his hand, watching the other walk away. "I wouldn't have it any other way."  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yami could only stare at his cousin in utter shock, his mouth agape. "YOU WHAT!?" he cried, making the others jump. Once again the group found themselves in Marik's room in conference. 

Seto smiled smugly, leaning back in his chair. "I challenged him to a fight. Nothing big. I also consider it a test to see if what I assume is true." 

Marik laughed. "That poor kid's not gonna have a chance," Seto shook his head. 

"I wouldn't say that. I see him as being a good opponent. When I first encountered him the first thing he did was stand in Aha Khemet."

Yami smiled at the memory those words brought. It had been a long time since he and Seto had practiced, normally doing so in the early morning just as the sun rose. "I wonder where he learned it," Malik wondered out loud. 

"Hello," Bakura snorted. "Half of Seto's soul? I think he would know the art by heart, even if he doesn't remember it." 

The blonde glared at him then pouted and look away. "I was just thinking out loud..." 

The white-haired boy chuckled. "Malik thinking. Glad I interrupted that event. Wouldn't want him hurting himself." The said boy pouted more and cooed lovingly when Marik wrapped his arms around him, pulling him close. 

"So have you decided where and when?" Yami asked to get back to the subject at hand. "I want front row seats. This may just be the fight of a lifetime."

The brunette smiled. "Back of the school after lunch. Very grade school, I know," he stated to Malik who snickered. "Apparently the mutt has been watching me behind my back because he knows when my free periods are." Malik let out another snicker. 

"I think we should all get some sleep," Marik said and looked out the window to the darkening skies. "You gonna stay here tonight, Bakura?" The white-haired boy shook his head. 

"No. Tonight have to go make nicey nice with the baby," and he walked from the room.


	10. Chapter 10

Laying in his bed, Ryou was deep in thought, tapping the eraser of the pencil against his lips. Even though he'd been having a somewhat horrible he tried to make it seem like it was all fun and games at his new school. He didn't want his father worrying about him and winding up leaving the dig site. Ryou remembered how excited his father had been when he spoke of the new excavation, which made him smile. True he missed his father a lot but as long as he was happy, Ryou could be happy for him.

The opening of the door snapped the boy from his thoughts and he turned to see who it was, hoping it was Yuugi. He was starting to get bored and couldn't think of what to write. His bubble was burst though when Bakura walked through the door with his usual scowl on his face. "What do you want?" Ryou snapped, watching the other go to his bed. 

"I came to sleep. Goodnight." Bakura flopped on his bed and turned away from Ryou, facing the wall. The smaller boy scowled at his roommate's back and focused on his paper again.

After a while of silence, Ryou had forgotten Bakura was in the room. That was until a weight on the bed made him jump and turn quickly. "Who are you writing to?" Bakura asked peering over the boy's shoulder. His soft breath was making Ryou's hair move slightly, ticking the boy's neck. 

"My father," Ryou replied his voice snarky, hand moving to scratch at his neck. "But why should you care?" Something flashed through Bakura's mind and Ryou felt a sharp stabbing pain, and then it was gone as quickly as it had come. 

"Just curious," Bakura said with a shrug. Ryou shook his head and strengthened his mental wall, knowing the other was still there, reading over his shoulder. He didn't mind too much, just when it came to certain lines he wished the other student would just leave him alone. "You must love your father a lot to write all that," Bakura muttered after a minute. Ryou said nothing and kept writing, still feeling Barkua's breath in his hair and washing over his face. He smelled of mint and sand. An odd, but a calming mixture. They were in silence for a long period of time before Bakura sighed and leaned back. "I'm sorry." 

Ryou's hand stopped in mid-word and he looked over his shoulder. Bakura sat with his back to him, his shoulders sagging, his elbows resting on his knees. "What?"

"I said I'm sorry for....for everything I've done to you." The only noise in the room was the beating of Ryou's heart, which stuttered at the words. Bakura was sorry? "Why are you apologizing now?" Bakura ran a hand over his face with a heavy breath and turned to look at the smaller boy. 

"Mostly because it wouldn't be fair to lie to your father like that. So," he gave a slight smile. "I want to help at least make that statement ' _I've been having a great time_ ' at least a little true." Ryou sat up, clutching his letter in his hands. He started when he felt the brush of fingers across his cheek, though Bakura hadn't moved.

Said boy's smile grew softer, his eyes gleaming with something akin to gratitude. "One question for you... In the bathroom...Why did you do it?" 

Bakura shook his head and gazed at the floor. "To tell you the truth I was a little frightened of you." Ryou gave a short laugh. "No, I'm serious. When you first came that day, the resemblance between us....and plus I could feel your mind, feel the power you had. I wasn't sure until I confronted you in the bathroom that day, and when I truly felt it, it felt so much like mine. It was a little scary. I felt as though I had to make you leave, or at least make you hate me you would never want to be near me. But now..." he ran a hand through his hair, making it look even scruffier. "Now I know that was the wrong thing to do."

Bakura steadied his gaze on Ryou, his dark brown eyes shining with regret. Ryou frowned and looked away, not able to keep eye contact. "And what about the night when you saw my birthmark? Why were you so insistent that I know something about it?" Bakura said nothing for a moment, thinking the question over. 

"If I told you, you would think I'm crazy," he let out an amused snort, "well crazier at least. So, I'll leave that for another time." He stared at the younger boy with a soft expression. "I hope in time you can forgive me. Now that I've gotten to know you, you're all right...For a brat." He ruffled Ryou's hair and stood. "G'night."

He left a very confused Ryou as he climbed into his own bed. Pulling the blankets up he stared at the wall, listening to Ryou's breaths and the sound of the pencil scratching against the paper. Ryou smiled and put the finishing touches on his letter. ' ** _I've made some new friends since this letter, dad. I wish you the best of luck and be safe. Love Ryou._**  
'  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
The next morning was a quiet one for Yuugi and his friends. Jonouchi was tense, his emotions affecting Yuugi, thus making them all on edge. "Jono...are you all right?" Otogi cast a concerned look at his friend. The blonde glanced up from his barely eaten breakfast. That was when the group knew something was wrong. Jonouchi was always the first to finish his meal, and after was still asking if they wanted to finish theirs. 

"Yeah, I'm just tired is all. Otogi nodded, sending a look to Honda who returned it. They all jumped when the shrill noise rang through the air.

"That's the bell," Yuugi said with a sigh. "Time for class." He turned toward the albino boy. "See you second period, Ryou?" The said boy nodded happily and they parted ways to go to their own classes. The morning had only just started, but already Ryou felt drained from last night. He walked into his classroom and spotted Bakura sitting in his normal seat, his eyes set on the door. When he spotted Ryou his position visibly relaxed and he allowed a smile to curve his lips. Ryou sat and smiled back at Bakura and was about to say good morning when Marik let out a loud snore. Both boys blinked then burst into laughter that was quieted as soon as the teacher came in.

As class went on, the lecture became more and more confusing to Ryou. It was as if the teacher were speeding through the curriculum, not giving the class a chance to catch up. What was this, a school of geniuses? he thought with a huff. Bakura paid no attention to the teacher, instead, all his focus was on Ryou. All through class, his mind kept reaching out as if with a will of its own just to touch Ryou's mind. As if he couldn't live without knowing the boy was real and there with him. ' _I can help you with this_ ,' Bakura whispered into Ryou's mind. 

The boy jumped then looked back at him angrily. ' _I would appreciate you staying out of my mind, thank you_.' 

Bakura chuckled lowly. ' _Have it your way. But then you might just fail and have to repeat this subject._ '

The boy went stiff then let out a sigh. ' _Fine. But just to study, that's it. After lunch, I have a free period._ ' Bakura was about to respond that he knew, but wisely kept that to himself. He instead smiled in triumph and went back to studying Ryou's thoughts, making sure to keep undetected. At least he hadn't slammed his wall down. That had to be saying something.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The afternoon sun warmed the courtyard, the voices of students drifting in and out of Seto's hearing. He stood in the middle of a circle of benches with his eyes set on the direction he knew Jonouchi would come from. Checking the placement of the sun he smirked. The mutt was late. From the corner of his eye, he spotted Marik, Malik, and Yami coming toward him. "Are you sure you want to do this?" Yami asked as he sat on a bench, humor riddling his voice. 

Seto simply nodded. "This is the only way to get what I want and need. Now that I found the missing piece I plan on getting him and not letting go. No matter what." He knew that sounded selfish, but that was the kind of man he was. If he wanted something, he would get it, no matter who he had to hurt in order to acquire it. The three others looked at one another with the same knowing smile. Then from the side of the gymnasium, Jonouchi came running toward them, his eyes wide and fists clenched. When he reached them he had to stop to catch his breath, his hands on his knees. "You're late," Seto stated calmly.

"Sorry," Jonouchi gasped out. "Fell asleep at the lunch table." As soon as the words left his mouth, the blonde's cheeks reddened. Why did he just say that? Seto stared at Jono with a cool mask, his eyes glinting in the sun. 

"Now that you've had your nap, are you ready to lose, mutt?" 

Jonouchi stood straight and glared at the brunette and took a step closer, a confident smirk on his face. "I think you've got that wrong, money bags." He threw off his denim jacket and rolled his shoulders. "And don't you dare go easy on me." 

The brunette smiled. "Never. Now let's go."

Jonouchi stared at the taller brunette, his fists clenched. Seto simply stood where he was, meeting Jono's gaze. "Well?" the blonde cried. "What are you waiting for?" Seto chuckled. 

"It is always good manners to let the weaker party go first." 

The blonde grit his teeth. That was it! One step lead to another and he attacked. His vision had gone red and he focused on Seto alone. He brought his fist up, knowing it would hit the brunette right in his pretty-boy face. In a fraction of a second Seto stood before him, then was gone. Jono nearly fell, righting himself at the last moment, and looked around. Where the hell did he go!? He turned and spotted Seto smirking at him from across the courtyard, a smirk on his face. What the hell just happened? Seto was right in front of him one minute, then was gone...How could he have done that? The blonde hadn't even seen him move.

"What happened, mutt?" Seto taunted. "I thought you wanted to fight?" Jonouchi grit his teeth and ran at his opponent, but the same as last time, just as Jou was about to hit him, Seto disappeared only to appear behind him! From the benches, he could hear the three of Seto's friends laughing, their hands on their sides. The sound only made Jou angrier. His arms tightened and his fists clenched, and he was about to attack again when he was stopped by the sound of Seto's voice in his head. 

' _Let go of all thought,_ ' Seto's voice calmly advised. ' _Just feel._ '

The blonde boy could only stare at Seto in shock, and again the voice came through, repeating the same words. Just feel, huh? Closing his eyes, Jonouchi calmed himself. Hitting air was getting him nowhere, so he might as well try something different. As he focused he swore he could almost feel what he thought was Seto's mind, but that was impossible. How could someone feel someone else's mind? He cleared his mind of all thought and took a calming breath before opening his eyes. Of their own will Jonouchi's arms raised to chest level, his hands curling as if to grip some sort of weapon, something that was familiar to him yet unfamiliar all at the same time.

Seto watched the blonde closely, their minds in tune and he felt when the other was ready. Slightly amused, he watched Jou's eyes open, they honeyed depths calm and glinting dangerously. Slowly the brunette imitated the same stance as Jonouchi, his mind touching the blonde's briefly only to feel Jonouchi's mind meet him halfway. When they touched, Jou jerked slightly but then calmed and stared into Seto's eyes. Suddenly as if on cue, both boys ran at one another, not knowing or caring what the outcome would be. They both knew this would be a fairly even match.

The two collided and the mental wave they both sent out almost sent Yami and the others flying off their benches. The three gave each other excited smiles. "This will be interesting," Malik chuckled.

Blow for blow the two matched one another, not aware of the crowd that was gathering, chanting, and laughing. Their focuses were on each other, sensing the other's attacks from both their movements and mental cues. One block sent Seto a step back and he smirked. ' _Very nice_ ,' he thought to the blonde, nearly laughing at the way Jonouchi jerked. 

' _I don't know how you're doing this, but stay out of my head!_ ' Jonouchi growled and attacked with a kick, but Seto smacked the leg away. 

' _I would say the same to you, mutt. You are invading my mind as well. Not many have been able to do that, but...seeing as you and I are the same._ '

That comment threw Jonouchi off a step and Seto saw his chance to end this fight. They would be there for hours if they continued like this.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bakura waited in the back courtyard watching some of the other students play while he waited for Ryou to come. He relished in the fact that he could now feel the joy in laughing when the boys started taunting each other playfully. How long had it been since he had felt anything besides blankness, relying on the others to feed him emotions?

Suddenly the presence of a familiar mind pulled him away from his thoughts and he looked to see Ryou running toward him, his bag flopping on his shoulder. When the boy reached him, his face was flushed and he was panting and he flopped down onto the bench. "You didn't have to run," Bakura chuckled. 

"I forgot my books in my room," Ryou panted, pulling out said books to place them on his lap. He then turned to Bakura with a hard look in his eyes. "I'm only here to learn," he said shortly. 

"I know. Let's get started."

He pulled his own book out from under the bench and opened it, passing it to Ryou, who seemed impressed by the detailed notes. Which in fact, was true. Ryou had never seen such neat handwriting. It made his own look like a kindergartner's. He studied the notes, asking questions on certain things, and found that Bakura had perfected an easier way to understand the problems. In fact, it was finally starting to click.

Just as he looked up to say something to Bakura, there was a commotion in the distance. Both boy's heads snapped toward the point of the noise. Bakura then let out a curse, startling Ryou. "Seto!" Was all he said before he shot up, notes he was holding flying from his lap. Ryou gasped and quickly set aside his own books and chased after the flyaway papers, catching them quickly using his mind to still them in mid-air. Once he had everything in order he threw their work into his bag and ran after Bakura.

As he followed and they got closer to the basketball court, the noise of cheers became louder and clearer. Ryou flew around a corner, nearly falling over with the sight that greeted him. Was Jonouchi fighting Seto!? Ryou picked up his pace toward the cheering crowd, Jou's face becoming clearer. He looked horrible! "Jonouchi!" he cried, fighting his way through the mob. 

One of the boys next to Ryou laughed and cheered when Jonouchi was punched in the gut hard enough to knock the breath out of him. Ryou glared at the blue-haired boy who sneered at him, eyes narrowed in challenge through the large, odd shaped coke bottle glasses. Turning away from the threat, Ryou pushed his way forward once more, wincing when he was elbowed in the chest. When he finally reached the front he instantly spotted Bakura not too far away from him, a worried look on his face as he watched the fight.

A hard push sent Ryou past the line of boys and almost immediately he could feel waves of energy coming from the fighting pair, nearly strong enough to send him back, but strong enough to make him dizzy. But, the odd thing was that amidst the energy, Ryou could feel no malice...only amusement and irritation, along with a bit of pride. Seto and Jonouchi were a flurry of punches and kicks, their movements almost synchronized. 

One movement had their arms locked and they circled one another, and to Ryou, it looked almost like a dance from another time, another place. He then felt something familiar and looked back at Bakura, who was too busy watching the fight to notice it, in shock. Those were the same 'threads' as Ryou called them when he and Bakura communicated. Jonouchi and Seto were both psychic?!

Not a moment after the waves stopped, Seto moved so fast Ryou had trouble keeping up with him. The brunette appeared in back of Jonouchi and brought his hand down hard on the blonde's neck. The blonde yelped and fell into Seto's waiting arms. Seto smirked and picked him up, throwing the unconscious boy over his shoulder. "I win," he said calmly. Bakura let out a whoop of victory and Ryou glared at him, sending him a mental image of his anger. The other looked at him stunned then averted his face sheepishly. 

Shaking his head, Ryou hurried over to Seto who calmly walked through the parting crowd, the students going their own way, disappointed the fight was over. "Where are you taking him?" Ryou called after the brunette. "He's hurt!"

Seto said nothing and kept walking away. Ryou growled and stomped his foot, then took off, running in front of Seto, blocking his path. "I'm talking to you! I want to know where you're taking my friend." Seto scowled down at him. 

"If you need to know I am taking him to my room where he will rest." Ryou was pinned with a harsh, cold stare. "Now move unless you wish to get hurt as well." The brunette sent a strong 'push' to his voice and watched as Ryou slowly moved out of his way, his movements involuntary and jerky. Ryou barely was able to loop up at Seto, and his face looked so cold but his eyes....brown met blue and they held one another's stared for a moment before Seto turned and walked away. Ryou saw something in the depths of those eyes, telling him the complete story and he knew his friend was in good hands.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So as you may have noticed, this is completely different from what I usually do. And I understand if my readers don't like this. But, I had this idea and I had to make it come to fruition. 
> 
> Now, onto Land of the Avengers. I decided to delete it to work on it to make things make more sense and to help it flow better. It will be back up when it's ready!

Giving the slight confrontation with Ryou to settle down a bit, Yami trailed after Seto slowly, a smirk on his face the whole way to his and his cousin's room. He closed the door softly and watched Seto deposit his blonde 'catch' on the bed gently. "How is it that every time you get into a fight, you're never caught?" Yami asked, remembering his own fights in the past which were, sadly, broken up in moments. Seto smiled, his gaze focused entirely on Jonouchi. 

"I have my ways." As he said this, he raised his hand and waved it toward the land, brightening the room greatly. 

"I still hate you for that talent," Yami pouted. The brunette smiled in earnest and grabbed a chair, moving it to the side of the bed, unwilling to leave Jonouchi's side, which unnerved him a bit. Getting comfortable he stretched and groaned when his back popped.

"The mutt can fight better than I thought. I should have thought to make my barrier stronger. I couldn't believe it when he started sharing his mind with me...he knew every move I was going to throw at him. He's a quick learner." His voice held admiration, along with some irritation. Seto hated being shown up. 

"But I see that didn't get the best of you, though," Yami commented. 

Seto nodded, his hand massaging his bruised-possibly cracked- ribs. "No one can do that." His voice filled with camaraderie as he cast a side glance at his cousin who returned it with a sly grin. 

"Except us, of course."

Malik and Marik chose that moment to barge in, shoving Yami out of the way of the door. "Damn Seto," Marik said with a whistle. "Did you have to that far? I mean he was kind of cute before, but now..." Malik smacked his look-a-like on the back of the head, glaring at him. 

"You don't say that kind of stuff in my presence."

"So what do we do now?" Yami asked, blatantly ignoring the two bickering blondes. 

Seto sighed, his gaze once again falling on Jonouchi's face. "I'm going to try and perform the spell he needs. If I can't do it, then I just have to take him by force and hope he forgives me."

"And then what, hit him over the head until he remembers?" Malik asked, his lover giggling. 

Seto smirked at that. "Not that drastic. But he will remember. I will make sure of that." Yami nodded. 

"He needs to remember everything about us...and you." 

Seto reached out to brush a strand of hair from Jonouchi's face tenderly, a soft smile on his face. Finally, after all the long years he found the missing piece of his soul. And this time, neither heaven nor hell could make him let go.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ryou went to his room, still shaking from the intensity of the fight, coupled with his confrontation with Seto. Was Jonouchi really alright? He looked horrible from what the boy and seen over Seto's shoulder. True he saw the intention in the brunette's eyes, but what was the reason for bringing Jonouchi to his room? Yuugi had told him that those two hated one another and yet, the look in Seto's eyes told Ryou a completely different story. Ryou shook his head and turned to close his door and he spotted Yuugi running down the hall, his face a mask of worry. "I just heard about the fight!" he gasped out.

The white-haired boy nodded. "I saw it," he opened the door to let the gasping teen in. "It was horrible." His head hurt just from remembering the violent waves of energy the two were giving off. "I need to sit." When they sat on the bed, a question started burning through Ryou's mind. Jou was his friend, but he knew so little about him...in fact, he knew very little about every one of the boys he hung out with. "Yuugi...can I ask you something?" 

The small tri-colored haired boy looked up from his tightly clasped hands. "Sure Ryou. What is it?" Ryou edged closer to the edge of the bed, resting his elbows on his knees. 

"Can you tell me about Jonouchi? I've heard some things, but I would really like to know his story." 

"What have you heard?" Yuugi asked, staring at the floor.

The albino boy looked up to the ceiling. "I know what you told me about him and Seto hating one another almost as soon as they met. I also overheard some of the enrollment aides talking about him the first day I came here. After my classes, I had to go to their office to sign some papers, and they were talking about how Jonouchi was dumped on the steps here and has been here ever since. Is that true?" Yuugi was silent, thinking of the best way to word something so sensitive. 

Finally, he drew in a deep breath, blowing it out. "Yeah. Jonouchi was actually allowed to live here and go to school here for free. I don't know why, but it seemed the principal took pity on him....he was a different man then, the principal I mean. He was nicer....but I don't really know much beyond that when Jonouchi first came to the school, but he did tell me that he had to be taught simple things; like how to read, and do math and things like that. He told me he hated being that weak, but what was he going to do? He couldn't even speak...it was like he was actually born on that day."

"How horrible..."

"He was miserable. By the time my grandfather sent me here, Jou had been here for a few years. We became fast friends." The small boy chuckled and shook his head. "I remember the day we found out he could fight. I was being picked on for being so small by the school bullies, and that was when Jonouchi came out of nowhere and beat the living daylights out of them. And he never got caught...I still don't know how he did it to this day, but after that, it seemed the bullies either left the school or were expelled. They haven't been back."

Ryou listened to the story intently. "Wow," was all he could manage, shaking his head in disbelief. "What about when Seto came?" 

Yuugi's brow furrowed in thought. "That was a while ago before I came here. So it's been about four years since then. Jou told me that as soon as the two saw one another, they hated each other. That first day, Jonouchi had attacked him. I heard from Otogi and Honda that Jonouchi seemed different...like an animal on the attack. They were frightened.

"But Seto simply blocked everything Jou threw at him, which of course made that silly blonde even angrier, and his attacks became even more violent. Seto did nothing until Jou managed to grab his wrists, then Seto snapped and threw him across the yard. Ever since then, they've hated one another." 

Ryou sat back in shock. So they hated one another for four years, and yet Seto brought Jonouchi to his room. "Thank you Yuugi," he smiled at his friend. There was a sound from the door and both boys looked to see Bakura come in. He stopped, his eyes moving from Ryou to Yuugi, then back to Ryou. 

"Ummm....hi?" 

Yuugi hopped off the bed. "I'll see you later, Ryou. I wanna go and check on Jou later." He waved to his friend before leaving the room, scooting past Bakura who watched him leave with an inquisitive brow. 

"What was that all about?" 

Ryou smiled and shook his head. "We were just talking."

Bakura nodded before moving into the room, closing the door softly. "Good fight this afternoon," he said after a moment, looking around the room. "Wasn't sure if Seto was going to win."

Ryou merely nodded, then spoke. "Jonouchi did seem like a good fighter. I didn't know anyone could move like that. But....the moves were strange. They seemed sort of familiar to me, but strange at the same time." He chuckled. "It almost seemed as if they were from another time."

"It was an Egyptian fighting style practiced by the pharaohs. It was the traditional way of fighting your opponents in formal battles," Bakura said as he lay on the bed, closing his eyes. Ryou stared at him. 

"How would Jonouchi know those moves?" he asked, his curiosity peaked. Bakura's eyes snapped open when he realized what he'd said. He was getting too comfortable with Ryou's presence for him to slip like that...

"It could be that before Jou was brought here, he was taught by someone...who knows. He doesn't remember anything from his past."

"How about Seto, or you? You've obviously seen those moves before." 

He peeked at Ryou through one eye. "We're all originally from Egypt. We grew up in a small town by the Nile. We were taught by some of the elders in the town." Ryou nodded his head, satisfied with that answer, but still wondering about Jonouchi. There was something odd about it all. With all the talk of Egypt, the boy's thoughts quickly turned to his father and his heart clenched. He missed his only parent so much. In the week since he'd sent that letter, he hadn't gotten a response from his father and Ryou was getting worried. 

He had gotten used to getting a letter from his father every other day, usually, all written in the same week about different discoveries and jokes the group played on one another. He missed those days...But then again, a letter could easily get lost in the mail, but he highly doubted that would happen with all the letters. He wished his father would write to him soon...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning the students were in a flurry of excitement as they all retold the story of the fight. Those that had witnessed it spun tales that made it seem extraordinary and supernatural, while others said things in their own words. Some were saying Seto fought like a sissy, others said Jonouchi went mad with anger, but that was mostly the students that had been in the school to witness the first confrontation a few years ago. Anything was said to make it seem more interesting than it really was. Ryou really didn't want to hear about it, but no matter where he went, there it was!

In the cafeteria he sat with his friends, trying his best to block out the noise, but it was hard without Jonoushi's loud voice and crude jokes. As he ate, Ryou looked over at Bakura's table and the other would look back with a smile. Every time Ryou would feel soft fingers run down his cheek and he blushed, looking away quickly. None too soon for the group the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. Otogi and Honda were the first to stand up, followed by the rest of them, and as a unit, they rushed down the halls crammed with students who had classes toward Seto's room.

Otogi knocked on the door and they waited with no response. Gritting his teeth the black-haired teen tried again, pounding on the door again, the frame rattling with his intensity. "He's not in right now," Yami said suddenly from behind them, making the group jump. 

"We want to see Jonouchi," Yuugi said, stepping up to look Yami in the eye. 

The crimson gaze softened and a soft smile lit his face. "I believe I can arrange that, little one." He walked through the small group and opened the door to Seto's room, stepping aside to let them in. Otogi and Honda stayed back, but Ryou and Yuugi ran in, the smaller boy's face lit up with a blush.

On the bed nearest to the window Jonouchi lay under the blankets, his face smoothed over in sleep. Ryou winced at the slightly swollen eye and the bruise on his cheek but was relieved that he was all right nonetheless. "Jonouchi?" Yuugi called softly. The blonde groaned, his eyelids fluttering as he woke. He looked at the faces smiling down at him and slowly sat up, looking around in a confused daze. 

"It's about time you woke up," Yami mused as he walked in the door, leaning on the wall. 

Jonouchi stared at him, then gasped. "The fight! damn that Seto! He cheated!" His fist hit the bed with a soft thud. "I don't know what he did, but I know he cheated during that fight..." 

Yami chuckled and pushed away from the wall to be closer to Yuugi. "I doubt that, kid. But, if that's what you want to tell yourself, go right ahead." Jonouchi glared at him, that is until his stomach growled. Loudly.

"I think the mutt's hungry." Seto's voice sounded from the door and everyone jumped and spun around. The brunette calmly walked into the room carrying a lunch tray filled to the brim with food. 

"Seto," Ryou began softly, but the brunette's harsh gaze pinned him on the spot, but softened a bit when Ryou looked down with remorse. 

"Hey," Jonouchi called. "Is that food I smell?" The blonde leaned over toward Seto, almost falling out of bed. Seto shook his head and placed the tray down, frowning when Jonouchi dug into it like a starving man. 

"I still have no clue how you can eat that stuff," Honda said with a shudder. 

"I know," Otogi agreed. "It tastes like my gym socks." 

Yami raised a brow at him. "And why pray tell, were your socks in your mouth?"

"One word: Marik."

Yuugi giggled. "Of course." He looked to Jou, who was still stuffing his face. "Well, now that I know Jou's alright, I think I'm gonna go. Things to do, classes to be bored in." Almost as if timed, the bell rang, ending their free period. 

Yami grinned and stood straight. "Let me accompany you in your boredom." He offered a blushing Yuugi his arm and escorted him from the room. Everyone stared at the two.

"What just happened?" Jonouchi asked around the food in his full mouth. 

"I think...Yami likes Yuugi, and Yuugi likes Yami," Honda said slowly. Seto smirked and nodded at Otogi, who smiled.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **THIS CHAPTER**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS GRAPHIC MALE/MALE SEX SCENE!!! IF YOU DO NOT LIKE IT PLEASE DO NOT READ!**

Ryou, Otogi, and Honda stayed as late as they could with Jonouchi before they were forced to leave the room by a frustrated Seto. The brunette slammed the door and took a calming breath. If he thought Yami was a mother hen, Ryou put him to shame at least ten times over. The room was silent, which Seto didn't mind, but when he looked back at Jonouchi, the blonde looked very uncomfortable. The brunette smirked and returned to his seat, picking up a book he had been meaning to finish. After a few moments of reading, he raised his eyes to look at Jonouchi, and it seemed whenever Seto found the blonde staring at him, he would look away, his face flushed. So the puppy was shy...He would have to fix that soon.

After a while of Jonouchi staring at him though, Seto sighed and put the book down. "How are you feeling?" Jonouchi jumped. When he met Seto's gaze, he felt his face heat up, determined not to be caught off guard.

"I'm fine....a little stiff, but good." 

Seto nodded, feeling a bit of remorse for how far he'd let the fight go. But he needed to test Jonouchi, set things straight. And though he would never admit it, the mutt had actually impressed him, and that was a feat within itself. He thought Jou had done considerably well. He caught the blonde staring out the window and with much ease, pushed his way into the other's mind, a little angry at how easy it was. He would have to fix that problem as well.

A passing thought ran through Jonouchi's mind that made Seto snort. "I did not cheat." 

Jou's head snapped toward him the brunette thought he would hurt himself. "What?"

"I did not cheat," Seto repeated. "I was simply trained in Aha Khamet." 

Jou's head cocked to the side. "In what?" 

The brunette crossed his legs and sat back. "Aha Khamet was named after the first pharaoh of Egypt who made and used the style back in ancient times. Though it was considered a bit too fancy for the battlefields, it was used by those in the courts to settle disputes and challenges with...it's known as a formal fighting stance." 

Jou's face lit with understanding as he nodded, then he seemed to jerk up even more. "Wait, how did you hear that? You weren't even in the room when I said that."

Anger flashed across Seto's face at the thought of the boy talking behind his back. "Do not say such things to me, mutt," he growled. "You forget easily that I am able to see what is in your mind." His blue eyes flashed dangerously and Jonouchi shivered, then a thought hit him. 

"I forgot about that! During the fight, I heard what sounded like you speaking to me....but I thought I had to have been imagining things. How did you do that?"

"Simple," the brunette answered. "It is the same way you were able to enter my own mind...though you don't even know how you did it, I'm betting. It comes easily to me, as it does to you. Mind you, I would have never allowed that to happen if I had known of your talents, but nonetheless, you were able to gain access. It was you who made contact first." 

Jou's eyes were wide. "You were right, I had no clue...does this mean I'm psychic or something?" 

Seto shrugged. "I wouldn't know," he lied. "But that is how you were able to keep up with me. You were in my mins, monitoring my moves, and knew when I would strike before I did...It was a great feat, and I'm very impressed." He inclined his head before turning back to pick up his book.

' _Seto...can you hear me?_ ' Jou's voice entered his mind, fluttering around like the dizzying speed of many butterfly wings. Seto smirked. 

' _Yes. It seems you are able to communicate strongly in this manner as well. I am surprised you knew nothing of it before the other day._ ' 

Jou snorted from across the room and Seto heard the bedsprings squeak as the blonde moved. "So when can I go?" The blonde asked out loud. Even though Seto was not even five feet away from him, it gave him a headache to speak through his mind. Seto lowered his book and turned to look at Jonouchi, a smirk on his face. 

"Not until we settle our little arrangement."

Jonouchi seemed confused. "Arrangement?" 

Seto nodded, his eyes intently on the man in his bed. "You've forgotten already? I'm a bit disappointed. The terms were that I won then we would go out, as you called it a 'date'." The blonde's eyes widened. "All we have left to discuss is the where and when."

"You were serious?!" Jonouchi's voice squeaked at the end of his sentence. 

Seto narrowed his eyes dangerously. "When have you known me to make a joke?" The blonde put a hand to his chin in thought. That was a good question...

"I don't even know you, so I don't know." 

The brunette nodded and stood. "Good. Then from this point on we will be getting to know one another. I want you near the gates tomorrow night at eight o'clock sharp. Do not make me have to find you." He lowered his voice threateningly and pinned Jonouchi with a leveled gaze, and the blonde found he couldn't look away. There was something in those crystalline depths that drew him in and he never wanted to look away. Seto broke contact when he turned away, the movement looking forced, and Jou was released from his trance. 

"Wait...what?"

Before he could say anything more, Seto left the room. ' _You may leave whenever you feel up to it,_ ' the deep voice whispered in his mind. The instant Seto left his mind, the blonde felt bereft without his presence, his soul seeming to grow darker. What exactly was going on here?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In their room for the night, Ryou and Bakura sat simply talking. "Seto is really nice, I guess," Ryou stated while staring up at the ceiling. He hadn't noticed the different shapes in the popcorn texture before this. 

Bakura nodded. "Yeah, he is. He just takes a while warming up to other people. When we were growing up he used to mother us constantly. I remember when Yami fell into the Nile, Seto freaked out." He chuckled at the memory. "He was screaming and running around like a chicken without a head." Bakura's body was shaking with his laughter. He hadn't thought of his childhood for quite some time. 

Ryou burst out laughing. "I never would have thought of Seto like that!"

"You should have heard him when he went into puberty and he screamed...he sounded like a little girl." That made Ryou giggle even harder.

In all his thoughts he would have never thought Bakura was so nice, not with the way he looked and acted toward other people. And, Ryou thought, if Bakura had never done all those terrible things to him, he never would have gotten to know the other as he did now. It seemed a bit odd when Ryou thought about it that way. ' _I guess things have a way of working out,_ ' he thought, barely even feeling the other in the back of his mind. 

' _You bet they do,_ ' Bakura's slightly scratchy voice flitted through his head and Ryou glanced up at him. Whenever Bakura did that, it felt right to him. When he was with Bakura, he couldn't explain his feelings other than...whole. Almost like two pieces of a puzzle that had been lost for a long time and were finally placed on the board.

For a long time, he remembered feeling that there was something missing from his life, like there was another part of him somewhere he couldn't remember. But, when he was with Bakura, it was like those memories were just within reach, and he felt plain happy. He didn't want this feeling to end.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
 **THIS IS WHERE THE BOYXBOY BEGINS!!!**

Malik lay on the bed staring up at the face that was identical to his. The other crawled over Malik like a snake, covering his body like his own. "Marik..." he moaned softly. He didn't know what had lead to this....he remembered feeling this wholeness within him and he felt happy, but he needed Marik with him, and as soon as said boy walked into the room, he jumped Malik from behind, practically tearing off his clothes. 

"I love the way you say my name like that," Marik purred, breaking the other's thoughts. "It's sexy." 

Malik smiled invitingly. "You know I only want to please you." 

Marik growled teasingly, his head descending on his lover's neck quickly and with deadly accuracy. He barraged his light's neck with nips and licks, making the smaller boy squirm. "Marik....oh gods...Marik, please hurry. I need you." Malik's voice was husky and plaintive, making Marik smile and bite his lover's neck harshly making him cry out. 

"You know I never rush things." He went back to his play. He wanted his lover ever since the fight, the violence turning him on as nothing else could....but there was something else in the air that made him just want Malik even more. Said boy writhed and moaned under him, his eyes glazed over with passion as Marik found the one spot on his neck that drove his lover wild. A few moments spent there made sure Malik wouldn't come down from his pleasure high, and Marik ventured lower on the small, lithe body.

He stopped at a coffee-colored nipple and lapped at the nub, shivering at the loud moan from his lover. He looked up at Malik, who was staring down at him, his lilac eyes shining with lust. "Do you know what you do to me with this sexy body of yours, my love?" Malik shook his head with a moan. "You make me want to ravage you until you scream for mercy, moan my name over and over..." 

Malik shuddered in pleasure. "Please," he begged, "ravage me my dark." He couldn't help but watch Marik's head move, the pleasure he gave with his tongue alone immense...but he wanted more. He asked again but was denied, and with a growl, he grabbed Marik's shoulders and giving him a hard shove, he rolled the other onto his back. Marik stared up at him with wide shocked eyes. "I thought I told you to hurry," Malik teased, his voice and eyes dark. "Now you will pay the price for not listening to your light." 

Marik gave his lover a sly smile, his lust clearly written in his eyes. "You're acting like I did the day we met....now I can see what made you fall in love with me." He raised a hand to trace Malik's face, going over every feature. "I loved you the moment I saw you....the way your eyes shine with a passion...the way your hair falls into your face..." He ran his hands through the soft, head of full blonde hair. "I love all of it." Malik lost his composure and blushed, looking away.

Seeing his chance, Marik pushed them back into their original position, this time leaving a confused Malik on his back. "Hey!" the boy cried after a moment. "That's not fair...you always use the same trick on me." 

Marik smiled. "And you always fall for it...and besides, all's fair in love and war in the bedroom." Watching intently, Malik's eyes never left Marik's as he kissed the man's skin, moving lower and lower, his tongue tracing a path down the other's abdomen and lower still. Malik moaned and shivered with each kiss and stroke of that wonderful tongue. Lower and lower Marik went down his lover's body until he reached the small opening that would soon join them together. "Get ready for a night of pleasure that will blow your mind," he whispered, and without giving Malik a chance to respond, he thrust his tongue into Malik's body.

Malik threw his head back, letting out a loud cry, his fists bunching in the sheets beneath him. "Oh," he moaned. "Oh, gods...yes!" His cries made Marik delve deeper, his nimble tongue stroking Malik's inner walls, his hips coming off the bed. Malik's chest heaved as he panted, his skin flushed. Marik gave him a moment to catch his breath and watched his lover writhe. 

"Tell me how you want it..." 

Malik gulped loudly, his throat working as he tried to form words. "I...I want you," was all he could manage. 

Marik chuckled, his breath fanning over the other's leaking erection. "What? Do you want me like this," he thrust two fingers into Malik's opening, their eyes never breaking contact. He moved his fingers in and out, rotating between quick strokes and slow, torturous movements that made Malik nearly go insane. "Or like this?" He spread his fingers slowly, smiling wickedly when Malik let out a pleasure-filled cry.

"Oh, gods Marik! I just want you!" 

Said boy smiled and moved up to place a chaste kiss on his lover's lips. "Then have me you shall." Removing his fingers slowly, his attention fell on Malik's straining erection. It was thick, but not as long as his, but it still was beautiful to him. Taking the shaft in his hand, he began slowly stroking it, his thumb brushing against the swollen red tip. Malik moaned and arched his back, trying to thrust his hips for more friction. Taking pity on his lover, Marik bent and took the tip into his mouth, sucking the salty flesh with relish. 

Malik wailed his please, his back snapping into an arch in danger of snapping his body in two. "Marik! Oh gods, more!" 

Marik hummed and moved down, the tip of his lover touching the back of his throat and he swallowed around it, listening to Malik's desperate cries.

Reaching up, he slid two fingers into his lover's mouth to keep him from making too much noise and get them caught. Malik immediately started sucking on the digits, his tongue swirling around both of them, loving them both and together with talents that made Marik shiver. He could feel his lover's sack tightening, signaling the possible end to their fun. He let Malik go with a 'pop' and sat up on his knees, twisting one of Malik's legs so it sat on his shoulder. "Get ready," he growled, taking his fingers from his light's mouth, inserting them into his body once more. Malik gasped, his hips jerking. Marik smiled as he slammed his fingers in and out of Malik's pliant body until the flesh surrounding them was soft and malleable. 

"Please," the other begged. "I need you...I need to feel you inside me....please, fill my body, and my soul..." 

Marik groaned at those words. "You're so sexy...and I can't wait anymore."

He grabbed Malik's legs roughly, placing both his shins on his shoulders, and scooted up, lining himself up with the other's portal, looking Malik in the eyes. "Here I come..." With a nod from Malik, Marik thrust into the tight channel, moaning at the explicit heat that surrounded him, welcoming him home. He loved the way Malik felt, all heat and satin wrapped around the steel of his body...and he loved Malik. 

"Please," said boy moaned, his hips jerking. "Marik, please move...I'm ready." And ready he was. 

Marik closed his eyes and began moving. His first movement almost made him explode, the tight walls clenching around him, the hot silk rubbing against him like a tight, wet fist. When he had pulled out almost all the way, he slammed back into his lover with a grunt, throwing his head back. Moaning, Malik watched his dark's face, read his expression. He loved the way Marik looked as if he could touch the heavens when they were connected like this. Tentatively he reached out with his mind, linking them together even further. Pleasure exploded in both of them, the intensity of it doubled. 

"Gods," Marik groaned, his pace increasing. "You're so tight....so good..." Malik moaned in agreement, which was cut off into a strangled yelp when his most pleasurable spot was hit dead on.

The boy groaned, his body tightening around Marik of its own will as if trying to draw the other deeper. Marik cried out, his hips snapping back and forth, a grunt coupled with each thrust. Quickly he reached for Malik's straining erection, pumping it in time with his thrusts. "MARIK!!!" Malik's voice echoed in the room as he came. Lights flashed behind his eyes and his body shattered into a million pieces, all to be put back together by Marik's hands and body as he continued to thrust, panting in Malik's ear. Finally, Marik let out a muffled cry and with a single hard thrust buried himself into the impossibly tight opening, meeting his release in a flurry of explosions.

Together they fell to the bed, still connected through mind and body. Marik kissed his lover softly, their panting breaths warming each other's faces. "That," Malik panted, "was amazing." Marik nodded, unable to speak just yet. After a minute he rolled off his smaller lover with a grunt, staring up at the ceiling with a sated smile on his face. He pulled Malik to him, who cuddled into his side with a happy, his head pillowed on his chest. "I love you," Malik whispered before drifting into a deep sleep. Marik kissed his light's head and followed him into the world of dreams with a whispered 

' _I love you_ '.


	13. Chapter 13

Saturday morning came with a clear sky and a plethora of happy students heading to their homes to see their families for the weekend. But for Ryou, it meant that the mail was there. He heard a ruckus in the hall and peeked his head out his door to see a small, black-haired boy handing out envelopes to those who answered their doors. He bounced in place and waited for his rather large box, thanking Mokuba before practically running back into his room. The envelope was addressed by his father, and it seemed thicker than normal. He couldn't wait to hear the stories his father had written to him about!

He fell on to his bed and ripped the packed envelope open, his eyes dancing with curiosity and joy. His father always gave him the best presents and hoped it was something from the dig site. Finally getting the letter open he pulled out a folded piece of paper and gasped at the shining gold circlet left inside the box for him. Slowly he reached in and pulled it into the light, hearing a gentle chiming sound, and once fully out of the box, Ryou nearly dropped it. 

It...it was the exact replica of his birthmark! He reached out to touch the small hanging diamonds attached to the ring, which held inside of it a golden pyramid, emblazoned with the all-seeing eye. The paper in his other hand crinkled as if to remind him it was there, and he quickly unfolded it to reveal a large wad of money, much larger than his normal monthly salary.

Eagerly he went over each word, his joy elevating with each sentence. It was great news! Just as he finished the letter, Bakura walked into the room, making his entrance known with a mighty yawn. 

He spotted the boy. Could he call Ryou a....friend? He supposed he could, after all, they'd been through. Even though he caused mostly problems, but they were learning to get along. His friend was sitting on the bed and scratched his head. "Ryou? What are you doing inside? I thought you would be out in the sun or something, not sitting in the room. The weather's cleared up, and it's pretty warm for the fall." 

Ryou looked up at him with a smiling face. "I just got the greatest news from my father! He said he and his crew have just found the lost tomb of one of the queens of Egypt! He says in his letter that her name was Nefertiri...but I don't understand how she was called a queen if she didn't actually rule...It says here that she actually married a thief instead of the Pharaoh."

Bakura couldn't speak in his shock. He hadn't heard that name..."Nefertiri," he whispered softly, his voice shaking. Ryou cocked his head. 

"Bakura? Are you all right? You looked so sad for a moment." 

The taller boy shook his head and forced a smile. "Oh, it was nothing. It just makes me miss Egypt, that's all." He flopped next to Ryou, looking at the letter. "Did your father say anything else?" The smaller boy nodded, practically glowing with excitement. 

"Yes he did! He said he was glad that I'm making friends and all. He was a little worried about me in the beginning, but now I think his mind is at ease, especially after that last letter. He also sent me a large allowance for the month! He got a raise and a promotion for finding the lost tomb."

He opened the envelope to show Bakura, who whistled. "Woah! That's a lot of money..." A grin spread over his face. "And you know what you should do with money....right?" 

Ryou cocked his head. "What?"

"Go shopping." 

The boy laughed and shook his head. "I don't think so. It's been so long since I was here, I wouldn't know where any of the stores are, or how to get there. Sure I grew up in this town, but..." 

Bakura gave a cocky grin. "That's why you have me here. I know this city like the back of my hand. I even know where to go to get great deals, too. Come on. I think it might even bring back some memories of your hometown...which I'm annoyed that you kept from me all this time." 

Ryou gave an innocent chuckle. "Well, I need some surprises, don't I?" He grabbed his light jacket and shoes. "Maybe we can stop by my old neighborhood...I haven't been there in so many years...not since mother..." his face fell and he looked down. 

"Ryou?" Bakura took a step toward him, but Ryou put a hand up, stopping him. 

"No, it's nothing. I really would like it if you showed me through the city." He gave a smile that Bakura returned.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yami sat under one of the large trees on the great lawn of the school's property completely bored out of his mind. Seto was in their room meditating-and had thrown Yami out when he complained of the boy making too much noise by breathing. Malik and Marik were doing what he would rather not know, though he'd been told anyway that they were 'going at like like rabbits', and Bakura had taken off with Ryou. He smiled at that thought. It seemed that the two had finally hit it off, which made him more than happy, plus it put the entire group at ease.

So the only one without something to do was Yami, and that sort of made him feel left out. It didn't put him out, but at times like this he felt lonely....and he hated that feeling, after having so many lonely years. Shaking his head, Yami took a deep breath and looked around the campus. It really was a beautiful place with its many flowerbeds and fountain in the back, if one could forget the overwhelming feeling of foreboding that radiated from its walls. He sighed. Truthfully he was the only one that really felt it, but it came from the other students.

Maybe that was what had drawn them all there? Was it really this feeling that brought them here, to this place, or was it destiny playing its mind games with them? No one knew those answers except for the gods themselves, and he couldn't very well ask them. So what was it that made them come here in the first place? He turned his head at a noise and saw Yuugi coming toward him, and in that one second, he found his answer. He waved to the small boy who reciprocated and hurried toward him, flopping on the grass next to Yami. "And what brings you here, little one?"

The boy shrugged and turned to his side, his fingers playing with the blades of grass. "You looked kind of lonely over here alone, so I thought I would come and give you some company." The wind moved through the tree, the leaves rippling to create golden spots of sunshine that played over Yuugi's face. "You don't mind, do you?" 

Yami smiled gently. "Of course not. I'm just glad that you seem to have gotten over your fear of me." His eyes darkened, turning their rust color to an almost maroon. "I like you like this."

Yuugi's breath hitched as he was caught in Yami's stare, a slight blush forming on his face. Yami noticed and chuckled lowly. "So what are you doing here on the weekend? I thought you and your friends would be off somewhere as you always are." 

The boy groaned and rolled onto his back, arms splayed wide. "Everyone's busy or going home for the weekend. So I'm stuck here alone. And to tell you the truth this is the first time it's happened. Jonouchi has always been with me, even if the others were busy....strange, huh?"

"Well personally I am very glad you were alone," Yami mused. Yuugi gave him a confused look. "It gives us more time like this to get to know one another, and talk." The smaller boy smiled brightly, making his amethyst eyes sparkle. How Yami had missed those eyes. 

"I've been meaning to talk to you alone for a while now," Yuugi's words made him blink back into focus. "But I wasn't sure what the others would think about it...they don't like you very much." 

Yami gave a mysterious smile. ' _If only you knew how soon that will change_ ,' he thought to himself. "I wouldn't doubt it, with all the rumors going around about myself and my friends. So tell me, what has been on your mind, Aibou?"

Yuugi's head snapped up at that name, his brows furrowed. He knew that word...it sounded so familiar coming from Yami. It made him feel warm...but also gave him a feeling that he should be frightened of this person..."Yuugi?" Yami's voice snapped him out of it and he shook his head. 

"Sorry....well, ummm.....Iwaswonderingifyouwouldwanttogoouttothemoviessometimethisweekend?"

Yami was silent for a moment, then threw his head back and laughed. "I didn't quite catch that, little one," he chuckled, wiping his eyes. "Perhaps if you slowed it down a bit?" 

Nodding, Yuugi blushed and took a deep breath. "I was wondering if you would want to go out to the movies sometime this weekend......with me?" Yami smiled and moved closer to the blushing boy, and when he went to speak, the taller stopped him. Gripping his chin in two gentle fingers, he pulled the boy's head up to look him in the eye, amethyst meeting warm crimson. 

"Do you even have to ask? Of course, I would like to go."

The smaller boy let out a breath he didn't even know he'd been holding. "Then...tomorrow?" Yami nodded with a smile. 

"As long as it isn't one of those horror films," Yami shivered. "I hate those things." 

This made Yuugi laugh. "I know what you mean. Jonouchi brought me to see one of those and I practically buried myself in his side I was scared." 

The taller boy's face slowly lit up in a devious smile, eyes gleaming with mischief. "Then perhaps we should go see a horror movie..." 

Yuugi gasped and Yami took his chance to do something that had been plaguing him since the day he saw this little jewel. Leaning in quickly, he linked their lips together, noting Yuugi's softness and light flavor. The pure magic that flowed between them from the slight contact sent electricity through Yami's body, pooling in the pit of his stomach, building, and building until he felt as if they would both melt into one another.

Yuugi's breath came in short gasps, his beautiful eyes closed. Tentatively Yami slipped his tongue into the small, warm mouth, reveling in his taste once more. To Yami, it was the same warm honey and fruit he remembered from his love so long ago. When Yuugi shifted, Yami took that as a sign to stop, and unwillingly pulled away. "Very nice," he breathed. Yuugi simply stared at him, his large innocent eyes wide, and he nodded. Without warning Yami reached out to pull Yuugi against him, fitting his head perfectly into the crook of his shoulder.

' _I love you_ ,' he thought to himself, knowing now was not the time to say it out loud. But, this was enough for now.


	14. Chapter 14

At eight o'clock on the dot, Jonouchi found himself outside the school at the gates, just as Seto had told him to do. Why he was doing it he wasn't sure, except he was a man and men honored their debts. Even if it meant going on a stupid date with Seto Kaiba. "Damn it," he spat. Why did he have to go and lose that fight? He groaned and leaned his head back against the concrete pillar, a little harder than he wanted, and winced at the pain. That was Seto's fault, too.

The crickets sounded in the night, reminding Jou of the sound of laughter, aimed probably at him. He balled his fists. ' _You like him don't you?_ ' his mind seemed to taunt him. 

Jonouchi shook his head vigorously. ' **I do not like that snob,** ' he snapped back. ' **I'm only out here because I lost a fight, and the man in me won't let me back down from this. That's all. I hate Seto Kaiba with all my heart.** ' The crickets seemed to grow louder, their laughing chant grating on his nerves. "That's it," he growled and spun around, only to find himself staring into a pair of ice-blue eyes.

"Going somewhere, mutt?"

How Jonouchi hated that name. "Seto...what brings you here?" 

This made the brunette snort and frown. "It looked as if you were about to run. Were you?" 

The blonde leered at the taller brunette. "I don't run. I walk." 

At that Seto grinned. "All right. Since you like to walk so much then let's get going." He walked past Jonouchi a few steps then stopped, looking back at the blonde. "Are you coming?" 

Jonouchi sighed and nodded, tucking his hands in his pockets. "Where are we going anyway?" 

"It's a surprise." Seto glanced back at him again, an odd tint in his eyes.

The blonde felt butterflies take wing in his stomach at that look. ' _It's the dread,_ ' he told himself. The dread of having to spend more than five minutes with Kaiba.

' _I can sense your unease,_ ' Seto's voice filled his mind so suddenly the other jumped. ' _You have no need to worry. I won't be snacking on you if that's what you're thinking._ ' 

Jou glared at the back of Seto's head, picturing something blunt and hard flying into it. He was doing that mind-reading thing again...Could he do that with anyone? And why the hell did he get goosebumps whenever he did it? ' _You're probably taking me somewhere so you can publicly embarrass me,_ ' Jou countered back. Seto's soft laughter filled his head, making the blonde's body react unwillingly. Scowling, Jou glared harder at Seto, blaming him for everything that could go wrong in the world.

Seto glanced back a few times just to make sure Jonouchi was still following him. How was it that the boy was so loud in the halls of their school, but here he didn't even make a sound? Jonouchi was a complete puzzle, and that was part of the reason that drew Seto to him. He looked back again and nearly cursed himself when their eyes met and he was forced to look away. 

He hated this feeling of having to know that Jou was safe...and loved it at the same time. He wished his brain would make up its mind sometimes. With a sigh, he stopped at the black entrance to an equally black alleyway. He smirked when he heard Jonouchi's voice muttering curses when the boy nearly ran into him. "This way," was all Seto said before he disappeared into the darkness.

Jonouchi stood where he was just staring into the dark void, feeling something odd coming from it. ' _It's safe,_ ' came Seto's calm voice, the tone caring and reassuring. ' _Just follow me._ ' Jonouchi gulped loudly and with blind faith took a step into the darkness, finding himself in a surprisingly well-lit area. But...his mind stuttered. There was no light...Seto's chuckle seemed to come from the walls themselves. ' _Don't trust what you see by your eyes alone._ '

' _What is this?_ ' the blonde asked, still amazed as he headed further into the alleyway. It was like a maze. 

' _Just follow my mind. Find it and locate me._ ' 

Jonouchi didn't know what kind of game Seto was playing and was a little hesitant about doing as he said since he didn't and never would trust the taller male. 'Trust in me. I know this is hard, but if you do not, you will be lost in here.' 

Already starting to feel as if he were going in circles, Jou reached out experimenting until he latched onto a familiar presence and linked himself to it, using it like flotation device in rough waters. As soon as he thought of it like that his unsteady heartbeat found a slower rhythm, Seto's rhythm, matching each beat. He slowly walked through the many twists and turns of the apparent maze, trusting the presence of Seto, feeling it growing stronger and stronger with each step until he rounded a corner and nearly smacked into the brunette. 

"We're here," Seto said, gazing down at the blonde with what looked like pride.

"Where exactly?" Jonouchi asked, unable to tear away from those bright cerulean eyes. Seto smirked and his heart fluttered. The brunette turned away and opened a door Jono had failed to notice and stepped aside. 

"Go in and you'll see." 

The blonde licked his lips nervously and stepped into the building, gasping at what he was met with. "A dojo?" his voice echoed in the large, empty white room. He turned at the click of the metallic door as Seto entered. 

"I figured since I was able to beat you so easily, you could use the training. And it wouldn't hurt if I brushed up on some skills." Jonouchi fought the urge to laugh as he pictured Seto as the Karate Kid, holding up the peace sign. The brunette glanced at him, amusement in his eyes. "It would also help if you would learn to keep your mind closed to others....Mr. Miyagi."

The blonde faltered and almost fell. "I...I was surprised, that's all. I would think that on a day most people would usually go to a restaurant or the movies, something normal like that." That all-too-familiar smirk returned. 

"Well, I'm not most people," Seto replied. "There are uniforms in the back. Get dressed and come back here. You have five minutes." 

Jonouchi blinked and Seto was gone. Just what the hell was going on here?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Wow!!" Ryou gazed up at the large pristine building that was Kaiba Corp., his hand shielding his eyes against the low setting sun, painting a blazing red and orange backdrop. By now the two boys had been almost over the entire city, and by the tell of the many bags in their hands, had been to many of the shops. At the exclamation, Bakura sighed at the ever-energetic Ryou. "I think we should be getting back," he noted the setting sun. "We do have a curfew and it's getting late." 

At first, Ryou whined, but in the end, he agreed. "All right. We have other weekends, I guess." 

Bakura winked at the pouting boy as they made their way to the train. "Has it changed since you've been here?" 

"Oh yes. I don't remember a lot of it, since I was so young when my father and I moved, but it was nothing like this metropolis!" Bakura had to laugh at that. He had the same reaction to many things he'd seen.

Once they got on their train, Ryou began talking non-stop about their day, while Bakura could only listen with a small smile. How the boy could still be going after such a long day eluded Bakura. But it got worse when the train stopped at a station and suddenly Ryou shot out of his seat and ran out the door. Bakura cursed and ran after the boy, nearly missing the closing doors behind him. "Ryou!" he called. "What's wrong?" The smaller boy said nothing as he hurried across the platform, his breath coming in pants. "Ryou!" Bakura called again. He hurried after the feminine boy, alert to all their surroundings since this wasn't the best of neighborhoods. Once at the bottom of the steps, he caught up with Ryou and stopped him by grabbing his arm. "Ryou, what the hell was that about?"

Ryou turned to him, unshed tears in his eyes. "My old house," he whispered, turning back to look across the street. "It's still here." Bakura looked up to see an old, abandoned house. The windows that weren't broken in were boarded with old, molded wood. The outside was decorated with various gang signs, as well as other vandalism. The only nice thing about it was the door that seemed to still be brand new. Suddenly it clicked for Bakura. The reason for him and the others being drawn here...at one point or another, they were all here...

Suddenly Bakura cursed and looked around them, noticing the shadows had now become full-on night. "Great," he muttered. "Now we're definitely late." 

Ryou chewed his bottom lip. "Will we be in trouble?" 

The taller boy snorted. "Trouble is not the word. That damn fruitcake will have my head for this..." His body visibly shuddered.

Ryou chewed his lip in thought for a moment, then snapped his fingers. "I know! I always keep the window in our room open a crack. I'm sure we can get in that way without being noticed." Bakura shook his head slowly. 

"It was a good try, but there are cameras, remember? I'm sure he'll see us...and he always knows that goes on in that school." He dreaded what this would bring...


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas! 3 chapters in one day!! 
> 
> I haven't been writing much due to my not feeling it lately. I've been busy with my niece and I just got a brand new nephew as well! So I've been spending some time with them and loving every minute!
> 
> But, and I can't stress this enough **THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS SMUT! MAJOR MAN/MAN SMEXXING! IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT PLEASE DON'T READ IT!**

Jonouchi collapsed on the white mat, sweat pouring down his face as he panted. His shirt clung from his body and his muscles ached. He glanced up at Seto who was staring down at him, seeming as if he had just taken a leisurely stroll through the park. "Tired, mutt?" 

The blonde glared at him. "Not at all. Just thought I would take a break to say hello to the floor." 

This made Seto chuckled as he stepped over to where Jonouchi was kneeling and held his hand out. "I think that's enough for today." Jou was about to protest, but a look from the brunette made him shut his mouth. "This place will be here tomorrow, and we can come back whenever we want." With a sigh, he took Seto's hand and pulled himself up, his body protesting-loudly- any movement. 

When Seto lead him to a staircase he nearly groaned, but pushed himself up the small flight and followed Seto through the hallways and then a door and stopped when he felt humid air hit his face. Showers?

The blue-tiled floor was surprisingly warm and damp beneath his bare feet and he shivered, goosebumps rising on his skin. Wait...there wasn't anyone else here, right? So that would mean...he had to use the same room as Seto...alone....to shower... The brunette looked back at him with his usual smirk. ' _No one to disturb us,_ ' he sent to the blonde. Jonouchi jumped back, his hands clutching at his uniform. "Relax," Seto sighed. "You're safe. And, I have to say that you've improved in just one day, Jonouchi. You should be proud."

The blonde stared at Seto in shock as he walked away. Did Mr. emotional constipation just give him a compliment...and use his name in the same sentence? Shaking his head at the anomaly he hurried after the brunette. "Does this mean that the date is over?" 

Seto disappeared behind a white screen and chuckled. "Why? Are you not having fun?" Jonouchi shrugged and stepped into a stall, not wanting to get undressed in the same vicinity as Seto. 

"Well, it's just..." his thoughts were sidetracked instantly when he saw the time on a clock hanging on the wall and he cursed. "It's that late already!? We're passed curfew!" 

"It's all right, Jono. I do this all the time and never get caught," Seto laughed. 

The blonde threw the top of his uniform out of the shower stall, shocked. "Wow...Never thought of you as a rule breaker. Scary, yes. Angry at the world, definitely." Seto said nothing as he made his way to an empty shower stall. 

"As I said, I've never been caught. Besides, I have a place of my own, so I go there on the weekends. Usually, Yami, Bakura, Marik and Malik come with me."

Jou was now bewildered. He never knew Seto had his own home...he wondered for a moment what that must feel like and his spirits fell. He shook it off and turned the water on, glad that it came out warm. "What are you, some kind of magician?" 

The brunette smiled. "I have my ways. Now, are you going to shower, or stink the whole way home?" Jonouchi stepped under the water and reached for Seto's mind, but was thrown off by an odd presence. Shaking it off he tried again, but it came again stronger this time. He was so preoccupied he didn't even hear the curtain being moved until suddenly he felt a presence behind him. He turned quickly and brought his fist up, but it was caught in a second later he found himself staring at someone's chest, his arm in a tight grip.

"Very close that time," Seto's deep voice rumbled through his body. Jonouchi blinked and the brunette stepped away, letting go of the other's arm. Jonouchi could do nothing else but stare. Seto's chest was bare, his abs well-formed and his arms well toned. His eyes went further down to the white towel that hid Seto's groin and part of his thighs. "See something you like?" the brunette whispered in amusement. The blonde gulped, feeling his face heat up, and turned to walk away, but was stopped by Seto's hand grabbing his wrist and he pulled the boy into his hard, lean body. 

"The date's not over yet," Seto whispered into Jonouchi's ear, making the blonde shiver. "Remember when I said we would get to do something 'extra'? It was a promise I will fulfill." Jonouchi whipped his head around and stared at the brunette in shock. His lips parted and his brows furrowed, anger setting in, and was about to yell at the other, but Seto's lips covering his didn't allow that.

' _This can't be real,_ ' though Jonouchi. ' _Why would Seto be doing this? Why are we even here? Why does this feel so good?_ ' 

At that last thought, he tried to pull away but Seto wouldn't have it. He tightened his grip, their chests pressing together. His tongue slid out and over Jonou's lips, seeking entrance. Jonouchi clamped his lips tight. He was against this! Seto's lips curved slightly and his free hand ran down the blonde's body, stopping at his bare thigh and pinched his skin. Jou's mouth opened in a yelp and the brunette took his chance and thrust his warm tongue into Jonouchi's mouth, electricity arcing through the two of them at the deeper connection. Flames seemed to lick at their bodies, where they touched growing hotter and hotter by the moment. Jou felt as if he were burning up, being eaten by both Seto and the flames.

Slowly, as if by their own volition Jou's arms crept up to snake around Seto's neck, his fingers digging into the dark brown locks, pulling them closer together. ' _What is this?_ ' he asked. 

Seto's sigh sent a wave of flame down Jonouchi's neck and cheek, making him burn hotter. ' _Don't you remember what I said the other day as we fought? You and I are the same...we are one half of the same whole._ ' Seto's hands roamed over the blonde's lithe body to rest on the other's firm buttocks, feeling the shape of it. 

' _No,_ ' was Jonou's reply but he pressed his lips tighter against Seto's. 

'This is the only way we will be whole again,' the brunette countered. ' _Don't you want that void in you to disappear?_ ' 

Yes...Jonouchi wanted that more than anything....he wanted to know who he was and where he came from...But then all thought ran from his mind when Seto's hand began to massage his butt, finding all the spots that caused the flames to lick hotter. Seto groaned as the muscles under his fingers softened and melted like butter under his touch.

He pulled away and Jou whined at the loss of contact and stared up at the brunette, eyes glazed with lust, his face flushed. "We need to shower," Seto whispered. Stepping closer, he readjusted the flowing water, noting it had cooled, either that or he was burning hotter than the water itself. When it was perfect, he turned back to Jou, who was staring at the curtain as if he were about to run. And he couldn't do that. 

With a strong 'push' he focused Jonouchi's thoughts on him. He felt bad doing it like this...but this was their only chance, and he had to make it seem as if it were the blonde's free will. And he had said it before, nothing was going to stop him this time. "Wash me," he commanded softly and handed Jou the soft body rag and a bar of soap. The blonde stared at the objects in his hands, feeling like it was the first day he'd shown up at his school all over again.

Seto moved his hands slowly, rubbing the soap over the rag, creating a lather. After a few circles, Jou took over and stepped closer to run the slick warm cloth down Seto's arm.  
The brunette sighed at the light touch, closing his eyes, directing each of Jonouchi's actions with his mind, always a shadow in that wonderfully colorful mind. Slowly Jonouchi moved the cloth to his chest, moving it in small circles and Seto thought in that instant that this could be the first shower to actually kill someone. But when he glanced at the blonde, seeing the concentration on his face he had to smile. His cheeks were flushed with embarrassment, his eyes trying not to stare at one spot, but failed miserably. Seto felt his guilt turn to gladness, satisfied he had taken this course of action. It would take this, and possibly a lot more to get the blonde used to his body, and they were running out of time.

Moving down Seto's body, Jonouchi mentally cursed. Why was he doing this? It was demeaning, degrading, and not to mention embarrassing! He would never do this to the person he hated....but yet he felt a yearning to see Seto's body, to touch it....and the thought of becoming whole, regaining his memories...' _Think of it as training,_ ' Seto's voice brushed the walls of his mind and he shivered. 

What was it about the surly brunette that suddenly made him go weak in the knees? It almost felt as if he had no control over his body at some points, his arms had a numb feeling, but between his thighs, he felt hot and hard. He peeked down to see his penis was erected and bobbing with each intake of breath. He had reached the other's thighs and kneeled to get a better angle to run the slick cloth over those long, toned legs. Who knew Seto was so muscular, Jou thought to himself, smiling.

Seto watched Jou's movements, searching his mind for any signs of panic, quelling them as soon as they popped up. That blonde head was now inches from his half-erect member, and all the brunette could think of was how good it would feel to thrust into that hot, wet mouth over and over. He closed his eyes and moaned, feeling Jou shiver against him. 

And with each shudder, he could hear Jonouchi's thoughts, the disgust, the degradation, the excitement, and all that brought the guilt rushing back, but he pushed it back. He couldn't think like that right now. Not when he was so close. He felt when Jou finished and the blonde looked up to tell Seto to turn but stopped before he could say anything. He was met with Seto's erection and he watched it grow, his eyes drawn to it. It was perfect in shape and size was...well, he was bigger than Jonouchi, which put the blonde out a little. Other than that, there was almost something beautiful about it.

The brunette watched him carefully now with bated breath. He slid out of Jou's mind, wanting the rest to be up to the blonde, but he still felt worried. That was until Jou brought his head closer, his pink tongue poking from his mouth. And as soon as that wet limb touched the head of his engorged cock, Seto groaned, throwing his head back. Jou jerked back a little, thinking he had done something wrong, but Seto's pants told him wrong. It was then that feeling of rightness floated back into his thoughts, almost as if pushing him to do this and it helped him along. 

He felt Seto in his mind, strong with his want of Jonouchi to suck him, but the blonde wanted to do this himself. Sliding his tongue out once more, he licked at the tip again, this time tasting something sweet and salty at the same time. Intrigued by this, he tried again, getting more of the thick substance. He jumped when he felt a hand run through his hair and looked up into Seto's eyes, the other's face a mask of pleasure and concern. 

"You-you don't have to do this," he whispered as if his voice couldn't go any louder. Jonouchi said nothing and opened his mouth. Slowly he brought Seto into his mouth, his tongue sliding along the smooth skin. Seto threw back his head, his back arching and he groaned. Not wanting Jou to think he was alone in this, he linked them together, guiding the other.

Using the information Jonouchi began sucking, moving his tongue to where Seto wanted and set the pace. He had never done this before, and sure he knew about sex from the seminars at school, but this felt better than what they had been taught. It felt familiar, the weight of Seto and the sound of his groans, his voice echoing in the empty shower room. 

Taking a cue from Seto, he brought more of him into his mouth, his tongue sliding around the thick member. It felt like molten hot steel wrapped in the finest silk. "Yes," Seto's groaned words caught his attention. "Just like that." The hand reappeared, Seto's long fingers running through Jonouchi's wet hair. The blonde couldn't help but sneak a glance up at the brunette through his lashes, watching his face twist in pleasure, his mouth open as he panted heavily chest pumping. Jou did this to him....and that made him feel special and happy.

Taking a deep breath, Jonouchi pressed forward on the next thrust, but as soon as the tip touched the back of his throat he wound up choking. He moved back, holding his neck as he fought the urge to vomit. Seto smiled and pulled him up, massaging his neck, helping him breathe. "Give it time, Jonouchi and you'll learn. But now...it's my turn." Slowly Seto dragged his fingers down Jou's body, the slick smooth skin sliding under his fingertips. He traced a pattern to his thighs, finding and exploring all the indentations of Jonouchi's muscles, massaging the aching parts until they quivered. Suddenly Jou let out a loud gasp as Seto's hand found his throbbing member and his long fingers wrapped around it.

The blonde gave a loud cry when Seto's hand began pumping, the tempo fast and harsh, his fingers squeezing and loosening in a mind-shattering rythym. His thumb grazed the tip of Jonouchi's member and the boy gave a cry, his head dropping onto Seto's shoulder, his breath coming against his neck fast and hot. Seto grinned and increased the tempo, intent on driving the blonde out of his mind with pleasure. Jou was now giving small cries, his hips rocking with each move of the brunette's hand, not even noticing when Seto's other hand traveled down his back. 

Seto rubbed the taught cheek of Jou's rump, massaging the muscles once again, each pass his fingers delving farther and farther into the cleft. Finally, he found what he was searching for and his finger traced the small orifice. The blonde shuddered against him and Seto rubbed the ribbed muscle, each pass harder until the tip of his finger pushed into the tight opening. Jonouchi gave a yelp at the strange feeling, his hips still moving with Seto's other hand. "Seto..." he groaned, frowning when Seto pushed his finger in further. "What are you doing?"

Seto kissed the blonde's forehead. "Just relax your muscles," he advised. "I don't want to hurt you, but the more you tense up, the more it will hurt." He was past the first knuckle and still moving in further, growing excited the deeper he went. When Jou wasn't relaxing, Seto used their connection to enforce his muscles to stop trying to push him out, letting out a sigh when the tight passage loosened, though it wasn't much. 

Jou, on the other hand, was slowly getting used to the feeling and he tightened his grip on Seto's shoulders. The finger moved in and out of him, slowly at first, but then it increased in tempo until it matched the rate Seto's other hand set. The feeling of the brunette's fingers on and in him made Jou moan, his legs shaking with the effort of trying to keep him up.

When Jou's opening loosened more, Seto took the chance and slipped a second finger into the boy. Once again the other tensed, but Seto's mind was there to take over, forcing him to relax. "I'm sorry it has to be like this," Seto whispered into Jou's hair. "But we're running out of time..." Jonouchi's answer was a shuddering moan which made Seto push further in, spreading them wide, stretching the muscle. Jonouchi could only moan and shudder, trying to keep his sanity. Of course, the questions came to him, such as; why was Seto doing that to him? Wasn't that an exit only? He got his answer when Seto turned him around, letting go of Jou's member to push at his upper body until he was bent at the hip. "I know you've never done this before," Seto whispered. "So I'll be gentle."

At the new angle, the pain came back and doubled when Seto forced another finger into his body, twisting them, pushing at his insides. The brunette felt the pain through their connection and hated himself for causing it, searching for a way to rectify it. He delved deeper and his finger brushed a soft lump deep in Jonouchi's body making the blonde gasp and go rigid. 

' _What was that?_ ' Jonouchi asked, unable to speak but for cries as Seto pressed that spot again and again. 

' _Do you like it?'_ Seto asked, rubbing the lump over and over, his answer summed up in one word: 

' _More...._ '

Seto nodded and spread his fingers wide, touching that spot again to erase the pain. Doing this a few times he finally felt Jonouchi was ready and was glad because he didn't know how much longer he could take. The blonde let out a whimper when Seto removed his fingers, but he pulled Jonouchi up, pressing his chest against his back. "Relax for me," he whispered, nibbling on the blonde's earlobe. Jou's body practically fell limp in his arms and slowly the brunette lined himself up with the tight entrance, stilling when his tip touched the quivering muscle.

The feeling of something much bigger than fingers pressing against his hole made Jonouchi stiffen up and he whimpered. But Seto was there in an instant, whispering soothing words to him and he relaxed again, finding refuge in the other's mind, feeling each burst of pleasure the other did. And slowly Seto pressed in, pushing his thick member into Jonouchi's tight body, groaning at the explicit heat.

Inch by excruciating inch Seto moved deeper into Jou, the now soft muscle hugging and squeezing him. He didn't stop until his hips were flush against Jonouchi's backside, his member buried to the hilt. "I'm sorry if I hurt you," the brunette gasped out. Jou couldn't make a sound, his teeth so tight together, his eyes clenched shut. It hurt so much! 

The brunette knew to give the other a moment to adjust to his invasion and he stood still for a few moments before the need to move was unbearable. He pulled out as slowly as he went in and heard Jonouchi hiss at the pain. No matter how slow the brunette went, his size was painful for the smaller body. Jonouchi's hands gripped onto Seto's arms and he felt the limbs shivering under his touch. He looked back to find the brunette's face flushed and filmed with sweat as he tried to control his urge to slam back in and fuck him. Slowly Jonouchi forced his body to relax around the large invader, wanting to give himself to Seto. He knew the other was trying to give him pleasure, and that made Jou feel good.

Feeling the muscles loosen up, Seto glided back into the hot entrance a little faster than planned and his tip hit the same spot that made Jonouchi shoot up and cry out. And this time was no exception, only the sound was louder followed by a moan. Jonouchi's head fell back against Seto's shoulder, his mouth open as he gasped. It was the same spot the brunette had touched with his fingers, but this way it felt a thousand times better. 

Seto's worries lessened at that thought and pulled back again, letting his pleasure flow into Jonouchi's mind and the boy nearly fell with the onslaught of pleasure he felt from all angles. 'You can use this connection to your advantage,' Seto whispered into Jou's mind as he pulled out and thrust back in, still going slow. ' _Can you feel how good you make me feel? We were made for one another...you are my missing piece._ ' Seto's thrusts grew faster each time he pulled out and he listened to Jou moan, the sound music to his ears. ' _We fit perfectly together...out bodies yearn for one another.._ '

Jonouchi panted and moaned, forcing his eyes open to watch Seto's face, his beautiful face flushed with pleasure as he moved both in Jou's body and his mind. In that instant the feelings of hate he thought he felt for the brunette were abolished, and in their place came something heavier, something purer. "I....I think I love you..."

The words shocked Seto and he stopped moving, making Jonouchi groan. "Please...don't stop." The brunette ignored his pleas and gripped the blonde's chin, forcing him to look at him. Unfocused brown met blue. 

"What did you say?" 

Jonouchi smiled, his eyes shining with lust, but also something else. "I think I've fallen in love with you...And I think it was from the first moment we met. There was something about you...something that drew me to you no matter what...It wasn't hate that I felt, but....just your presence made me feel as if I could remember something from my past, and that angered me...I needed to find out what it was anyway I could, and my body reacted by attacking you." 

Seto closed his eyes to keep the tears burning his lids to come out. His out of control emotions were starting to annoy him. Groaning he pulled out of the blonde and thrust back in hard, reveling in the sharp cry of pleasure and surprise. "Harder," Jonouchi pleaded. "More...please..." Seto grinned and moved his hips faster and harder, the sound of flesh against flesh rising above the sound of the pouring shower. In time Jonouchi's hips moved in time with Seto's and they met with as much force as the other could give. All the while Seto could only think of Jonouchi's words and how they sent thrills of joy to his once heavy heart.

He wanted so much more...Jonouchi could feel Seto's emotions, could hear his thoughts and he wanted to give himself completely up to the beautiful male that held him so gently and lovingly. Hearing this, Seto growled and shoved Jou down, his hands always gentle, bending him at the waist. From this angle the thrusts were deeper, Jou's body even tighter. 

Every time Seto moved, the blonde's prostate was struck with deadly accuracy, causing a feeling to build in Jonouchi's stomach. It grew larger and larger until it moved to his thighs, butterflies fluttering under his skin. "Oh, Seto...I..." His voice was cut off by his cry when the brunette thrust harder, grunting with each movement, his hands gripping Jonouchi's hips tight. He needed this...

Seto stared down at the slightly tanned body beneath him, the smooth skin of Jonouchi's back glistening, his arms stretched taught, hands scrabbling at the wall trying to find something to grip on to, his legs shaking, and his cries urging him on more. Seto never thought this would happen...This feeling of utter completion. He had been with many men and women over the years, but none of them could even compare to this virgin panting beneath him. That in itself was another clue as to who Jonouchi was. 

"Oh god...please MORE!" Jonouchi's cries caused him to move faster and with a cry, he slammed himself deep into the tight virginal grip. With expert precision he reached around the blonde's quaking body and grabbed the forgotten member, gripping it tightly, his hand jerking hard and fast.

Jonouchi gave a shrill cry as his muscles tightened and the feeling deep in his stomach bubbled over and then suddenly burst, the dam releasing as he did, his hot seed spurting from him, hitting the wall only to be washed away with the onslaught of warm water. Seto could feel the silken sheath around him tighten as he ground his hips against Jou's backside and with a final hard thrust he came, throwing his head back and screaming his pleasure to the world. ' _I love you._ '

The whispered thought was nearly lost in the sound of Seto's guttural cry, but Jonouchi heard them. Hot tears flowed down his face and together the now lovers slid down the shower walls, gasping for breath. Jonouchi looked back at Seto questioningly. "Did you just say..." His words were cut off when Seto kissed his lips, the gentle touch becoming harder, rougher, more passionate. 

"I love you," Seto whispered and began thrusting in a slow pace, and slowly the waves of pleasure carried them away from the real world and all they had was each other to hang on to until the breath-taking crescendo.


End file.
